Those Bittersweet Summers
by Browny Pink
Summary: When Kameko Higuchi met Noriaki Kakyoin, they were only two kids with weird powers, but as she grew up, he came to mean so much more than that to her. She would do anything for him, and that included tracking down some crazy Stand-user, who decided to mess around with her best friend's brain. What could possibly go wrong? KakyoinXOC. Spoilers for the show.
1. Chapter 1

**_A/N: What's this? Another new story? Yup! Here I am. I'm so, so excited about this one. It makes my life happy and me too. At first, I hesitated to post it because I'm already posting on a few other stories, but it wouldn't get out of my brain. And since I'm writing it anyways, might as well post it for all of you guys as well. I'm really looking forward to the journey on this one as I'm trying a few different things with my OC that are different than my norm. It should be interested._**

 ** _So, as you can probably tell assuming you read the summary, this is a KakyoinXOC story, so it will follow the story of Part 3 with an extra. However, since I'm not overly fond of fics that only retell the storyline, I'm making this my own thing in a way. Instead of focusing on the parts already shown, I'll mostly show scenes of my own devising for between the lines. That said, I won't be able to avoid not retelling a few things, so if you see something familiar, it's probably not mine. Again though, this is gonna be a really fun story, so I hope y'all'll give it a chance._**

 ** _Thanks a bunch!_**

 ** _ENJOY!_**

 ** _Obligatory DISCLAIMER: I do not own Jojo's Bizarre Adventure or anything affiliated with it therewith. This was made for entertainment purposes only with no intent for copy infringement._**

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 _"Maybe it's not about the happy ending. Maybe it's about the story." - Unknown_

* * *

 **Those Bittersweet Summers**

 ** _Chapter One:_**

 _July, 1981_

Though she hadn't realized it yet, Kakyoin could still see her.

Obviously, she thought she was being sneaky... Or perhaps she just didn't think anyone was paying attention to her. That seemed more likely to the red-headed boy. It made sense considering there wasn't really anyone else around aside from the larger kid with blonde, spiked hair, who was bullying a short boy with glasses and khaki pants. Kakyoin himself was actually about to go over and tell the older kid to knock it off, to leave the other kid alone, for he detested bullies like that. However, something about the smugness splayed across the girl's face caught his attention, the way her eyes sparkled with the odd mixture of mischief and justice.

When she had seen the blonde bully, the girl frowned at the sight for just a moment before a grin broke out across her face, and she had, a little too casually, made her way across the park to a nearby tree. Clearly, she was up to something as her act was a little to innocent. The girl was even whistling as though she thought that would actually make her less conspicuous. Though she was out of sight of the other two people in the park, she had failed to notice Kakyoin, who was only about six meters away. Clearly, she wasn't a very observant girl.

That's when she had done it.

In her hand, seemingly out of thin air a small paintbrush swirled into being, the particles seeming to build upon themselves until it was fully formed. Since he was so far away and it wasn't a terribly large paintbrush to begin with, the object was somewhat difficult to make out, but he believed that it had elaborate carvings on it. Then she turned to the tree beside her and began to paint something onto the bark of the tree beside her. Afterwards, as if the paintbrush appearing out of thin air wasn't enough, a fist-sized beetle made of bark stepped directly off the tree and into her hand. "Incredible..." Kakyoin mumbled to himself, shifting forward in his seat on the bench near the edge of the park. He needed to get closer. Rising to his feet, the red-head slowly walked in her direction, not wanting to startle her, her back facing him.

Holding the large beetle in her hand, the girl made her way back to the two people and bent down to release the large bug by their feet. As she did so, Kakyoin took her previous position by the tree since it gave him a pretty good vantage point for what was going to happen. Idly, his hand ran over the spot she had drawn the beetle, and he noted that it didn't feel any different than a regular tree. When the bully caught sight of her, he turned away from the other kid, laying in the sand of the park now, not bothering to pick himself up again since he was just going to be pushed back down. "What do you want, you stupid girl? Can't you see we're busy here?" the bully asked, puffing his chest out and crossing his arms.

What was this girl doing? Was she not worried that the other kid was going to go after her next? She certainly didn't seem like it the way she stared the boy down, smile still in place, arms folded innocently behind her back as she rocked back and forth on her heels. At that moment, Kakyoin watched the bark beetle crawl onto the bully's shoe, which he didn't seem to notice. Was he so caught up in what was going on that he wasn't paying attention? Or … was it invisible to him? Could this girl be like him in some way? Though Kakyoin was hesitant to believe that, as he had never met anyone that was actually like him, he was smart, and with every moment that passed, the possibility seemed more probable.

"I was just going to see if you wanted to do something better with your life," she told him serenely, tilting her head to the side as her smile widened. "If not, I'm going to have to make you leave... It's up to you." Kakyoin sweat-dropped at the obvious threat there, his eyes widening in disbelief. Had she really just said that? She was either very confident in her ability or very foolish. At the moment, it was unclear which.

Realizing that the bully was distracted, the boy with glasses began inching away from the two as they stared each other down. When the girl's words registered, the bully let out a loud laugh right in her face, taking a step forward so that he was looming over her now, him being a whole head taller than this girl. "Oh yeah? And how exactly are you gonna do that?" he questioned, a wicked smirk spreading across his face.

Kakyoin took a step forward too, ready to step in if the bully attacked her. Obviously, he couldn't just let her get hurt if the bully decided to call her bluff. Though the red-head was hesitant to use him on the other boy, Hierophant Green could take care of that other kid no problem, and the other boy wouldn't even know what was going on. Regardless, he wanted to wait to see what the girl's plan was since the beetle had scuttled up the bully's leg and disappeared into his pants. Already, he had a pretty good idea of what it might be, but it would still be interesting to see. He needed to know if she actually was like him. If she had strange powers too – that he hadn't been imagining what he had seen a moment again.

"Oh, well, _I_ don't really have to do anything," the girl informed him, her voice saccharine sweet. "But you should probably start running before it bites you." At the boy's dumbfounded look, she continued with a shrug, "I've heard that it _really_ hurts when a beetle bites you." Then she pointed to the outline of the beetle as it scuttled around under the fabric of his pants.

"Beetle..." When the realization dawned on him, the bully let out a high-pitched scream and, taking the girl's advice, took off at a dead sprint out of the park, grasping and swatting at the lump crawling around on his leg.

Seeing him run away, the girl pointed and laughed, doubling over on herself from her fit and not bothering to restrain the action at all. Once she regained control of herself, she turned to the boy who had been bullied, where he had scooted a little over a meter back. She offered him a hand up. "Are you alright?" she asked, more serious now as she dusted him off a little bit.

"I.. I think so." Nodding to himself, the boy reaffirmed, "Yes, I'm okay now. Thank you..."

"Nothing to it," she told him with another shrug. Then glancing in the direction the bully ran off in, she sighed. "Still, it might be best for you to get out of here. He won't be happy when he realizes that there isn't actually a beetle in his pants..."

"What do you mean? I mean.. I saw-"

"That was just a trick of the light is all. I wasn't even sure he'd buy it," the girl dismissed with a toothy smile. But Kakyoin knew that wasn't true since he had seen her _create_ that bug, and her answer was a little too quick to sound sincere as though it was something she'd rehearsed. Why was she trying to hide it? Unless.. Yes, that had to be it. Kakyoin was certain now that this girl most definitely had a secret power, just like him. Obviously, it worked differently than Hierophant Green, but he knew it must be similar.

A furrow worming its way into his forehead, the boy frowned but nodded in acceptance. "I guess so... You're right though. I need to go." Glancing around guiltily, he admitted, "I'm not even supposed to be here today." With that, he took off in the opposite direction the other boy had gone. As he reached the edge of the park, he turned back and waved. "Thanks again!" The girl smiled back but didn't say anything.

Who was this girl? And how had she made the beetle? It almost made Kakyoin wonder if he had seen it correctly … But no, he knew he was right. She had conjured that paintbrush so she could create that beetle. Otherwise, why had she walked over to the tree to begin with? There was no doubt about it. This girl had an ability like his own. She was able to will it into existence like he could Hierophant Green.

Before now, Kakyoin had always been alone in his strange powers. Of course, he had always known he couldn't possibly be the only one. From his own research into his strange ability, he had learned about individuals called stand-users, which is what he had determined was the source of his ability. However, he had never met anyone else with a stand before – certainly not someone his own age, or near it … Perhaps it was foolish, but Kakyoin felt hope well within him at the prospect. Maybe he would finally understand more about the source of his ability such as why he had one while so many others did not. Maybe he would finally find some answers about himself, but more than that, he thought he might not be alone anymore, that that this girl would understand.

He needed to know more about this girl.

With that in mind, he strode across from his place behind the tree and wandered over to where the girl now sat on the swing-set, kicking her bare feet back and forth as she swung. She was a petite girl, likely close to his age, with light-colored skin, big brown eyes, and choppy, dark brown hair that framed her face and hung just past her chin. She wore a simple tan skirt and a purple shirt that had two butterflies printed on it. However, she had forgone shoes, and his face wrinkled with disdain for a moment at the sight of her blackened feet. When he approached, she dug her toes into the ground until she came to a gentle stop.

Blowing a piece of hair out of her face, she raised an eyebrow at him expectantly. "Hi there. Can I help you with something?"

Kakyoin paused, unsure how to phrase exactly what he wanted to ask. Just a moment ago, he had been certain that he knew just what to say, but now that the time had come, it was surprisingly difficult to get his meaning across without sounding incredibly forward and accusative. Finally, he settled on, "I saw you get rid of that bully." There. That was a good way to broach the subject, he thought. It wasn't so forward that she would feel uncomfortable, but it led into what he actually wanted to know.

"Oh yeah? A real piece of work that guy was, huh?" she said with a giggle, clearly still pleased with herself. The sound was higher pitched, and a little obnoxious quite frankly.

"Yes..." Kakyoin agreed. "I also saw _how_ you handled it."

"You mean the beetle thing?" she asked with a good-natured smile. Giving another little giggle, she waved him off in dismissal. "That was actually a bluff. It only looked like it, so I pointed it out. I figured it was the best way to get rid of him since I don't exactly have a very intimidating presence unfortunately." Here, she gestured down at herself before raising her arms and flexing to look tougher. Then, she continued, "Lucky for me, he bought it... And was scared of beetles, now that I think about it. That was another gamble on my part." She shrugged. "Then he ran away screaming like a big crybaby. Who was the real stupid girl there?"

Though he couldn't help the small smile that settled on his face, Kakyoin shook his head and pointed at her hand. "That's not true. You conjured up a paintbrush and created that beetle yourself," the red-head denied, crossing his arms over his chest. Right now, he wouldn't back down on this subject though it could be considered rude when she clearly didn't want to expand on it further. In truth, he thought that she would be more eager to share given that he had seen her ability.

Frowning and huffing a sigh, she narrowed her eyes and said, " Listen, kid, I don't know what you thought you saw, but I didn't-" Seeming to realize exactly what he had said then, she stopped mid-sentence. "Woah, woah, woah. Wait. You could see my paintbrush?"

Relieved that she understood finally, Kakyoin nodded. The girl was proving to be of a more stubborn nature, but perhaps now that she knew why he was there, she would be more helpful. "Yes. You called it to your hand while you were by that tree, then painted the beetle." The expression on her face told Kakyoin he'd caught her off guard, and if he hadn't been so curious just then, he would've smiled at the way it looked. However, he wanted to know exactly what that paintbrush was. Her reactions to his words told him everything he needed to know to confirm the idea that she did indeed have a stand, but now, he wanted to know more about the powers themselves. Had she always had the ability? If not, where did she get it? What exactly did it even do?

"No one's ever been able to see it before," she admitted, leaning in a little and lowering her voice as though it were a secret, a smile of shocked excitement spreading across her face. Then another realization hit her, and she frowned, rising to her feet and planting her hands on her hips. " _No one's ever been able to see it before_. Why can you? Who are you?"

Remembering his manners, Kakyoin bowed to her. "Forgive me. My name is Noriaki Kakyoin, and I apologize for being so forward just a moment ago. But I had to know about your powers because I have a similar ability," he explained quickly, his own excitement beginning to show. She had to be like him. He _wanted_ to believe it too. Perhaps he wasn't alone in his strange abilities as he had always believed. What would that mean for him though? It was quite possible that she couldn't provide any new answers for him. She could be just as in the dark about their powers as he was... At that moment, Kakyoin decided it didn't matter anyways. Just meeting someone else like him would be enough.

"No way! That's so cool! You have to show me," she begged him, growing even more excited at the prospect. She felt alone just like he always had, he realized as he took in the mixture of relief, joy, and excitement on her face. It was an expression that was hard to describe and one that would stick in his memory for years after. Perhaps she understood the way he felt. "I've never met anyone else who could do it. Though, I looked really hard for the longest time... I had to stop talking about it because my dad would look at me like I was crazy, and I even thought I might've been for a while because it's kinda crazy to even have powers."

Stopping mid-rambling, she gasped, her eyes widening as a blush stole over her features. "And, oh!" she exclaimed and bowed low to him. "I'm Kameko Higuchi by the way."

Staring at the strange, bright-eyed girl before him, the reality of his situation began to catch up to him, and for the first time in a long time, he smiled fully and freely, reflecting this Kameko's own lightness that stemmed from the knowledge that they were not alone. From here on out, things would be different for him.

 **-\/-**

 _December, 1988_

Kameko was furious.

The brunette woman was furious, and for once, she felt completely entitled to her anger. And why shouldn't she? After all, it wasn't like he had been her best friend for years or anything like that... Except, _wait a moment_ , that was _exactly_ the situation! Why the hell was he ignoring her?

Over the years, they'd had their share of arguments and fights over stupid things of course, and her very stubborn best friend usually resorted to the silent treatment and ignoring her when he _was_ mad at her. However, she always knew what she had done wrong in those cases, and that way, she could apologize, he would forgive her, and they would share a pint of ice cream and get on with their lives. It was the way things worked between them, and overall, Kameko thought it was a pretty good system. This time though, she had no idea _what_ was going on or _why_ he had apparently decided to lock her out of his life. They hadn't argued or fought about anything lately. Before his trip to Egypt, the two had been getting on as well as they always had.

A few weeks ago, when she realized that they _must_ have returned from their trip already, she had called his house to check on him. So, imagine her surprise – and upset – when his mother answered and explained that they had been over for a week and had Noriaki not called? Then, _then_ , just to add insult to injury, when she had asked to talk to her pig-headed friend, he had refused to talk to her. Refused! Alright, she had thought, she could deal with that. He had been in Egypt for a while, it was a long trip, he was tired, all that bullshit. So, she'd given him a while. But a week turned into two, and then three. Just yesterday, Kameko had called the house again, determined to speak with him, and the same thing had happened. With an apology – Mrs. Kakyoin was very nice and polite always – she had explained that her son was just very busy with this new project he had invested himself in, but that she was certain he would call her as soon as it was finished.

None of it made any sense to the brunette. Ever since they had met, he had never shut her out like this, or, not for this long at least. What was wrong? Had something happened in Egypt?

Stupidly, her mind whispered, _'Maybe he finally has a girlfriend..'_ The thought immediately soured her mood further, and her face turned down in a scowl. Was... Was that a possibility? Traitor that it was, her mind supplied images of her red-headed idiot of a best friend with some other young attractive woman with exotic eyes and full lips. Had he just become invested in some new girl and was too busy with _her_ to talk to Kameko? Almost as soon as the thought registered, she blushed in shame and dismissed the train of thought entirely. Even if he _had_ taken _interest_ in another woman – something that was _none of her business_ , she reminded herself – it wouldn't be like him to just dismiss her entirely like that.

When it concerned Noriaki, Kameko knew that she sometimes got a little too jealous or possessive, and with the way he was treating her, like he was done with her, like she was going to lose him, it was worse than usual. You see, that red-headed idiot of a best friend of hers was very important to her, perhaps a little more important in ways a best friend shouldn't be …. But a few years back, the young brunette girl had come to the horrifying conclusion that she cared for him as more than a friend. Only last year had she gathered the courage to admit it – not to Noriaki, never him – to herself. Either way, she knew it wasn't acceptable to just think the worst of him like that. He didn't deserve that...

But you could certainly believe that she was going to sock him straight in the face the moment she saw him again for acting like this...

Today, Kameko had decided she'd had enough. No matter how she thought about it, she couldn't come up with a single reason for him to be mad at her, and he wasn't sick or his mother would have told her. And if he wasn't mad or sick, then he was being stupid. Kameko wouldn't have that coming from him. So.. So she was going to go see him herself. To see what excuse he could come up with if she was there in person.

And that was how Kameko found herself headed down the familiar set of streets that led to Noriaki's house instead of the hallway that led to second period like she should've been. He hadn't shown up at school since before his trip to Egypt, so confronting him there wasn't an option. That was fine. She'd never been very big on school anyways, and it would've been annoying having all those people trying to listen in on their conversation.

Oh, but that was another thing! He owed her for covering for him when the teacher's were getting suspicious about his extended absence. Apparently, his mother had called the school with the excuse that he was sick with some weird flu he'd caught in Egypt and was still recovering, a lie Kameko knew. However, it was Kameko who had been getting his homework for him, and she had even done a few assignments so he wouldn't have so much to do when he got back... The brunette hoped he didn't mind getting the same grades as her for a while. Maybe if he would've answered the phone when she called, he could've had a say in the matter. Oops.

Before too long, the fuming girl found herself standing at the doorstep of the Kakyoin household. However, she stopped short before knocking, her closed fist hovering directly in front of the wooden screen. _'What am I hesitating now for?'_ she asked herself, feeling her anger spill over into anxiety. _'I want answers right? I want him to talk to me right? Then I have to knock on this door right now.'_ However, her arm only lowered to her side. Though she hated it, she knew exactly what the problem was...

Kameko was scared.

It wasn't something she would admit, not even to herself, but the girl was terrified of finding out the truth. Either he had decided he didn't want to be her friend anymore – something she refused to consider – or something very bad had happened to him. Kameko wasn't sure which would be worse.

Frowning at her own behavior, the brunette stood up straighter. Standing here thinking about it wasn't going to let her know what was wrong, she thought, calling back her anger, and even if it broke her heart, Kameko decided she would rather know the reason for his silence than remain ignorant forever. With a huffy breath, she raised her arm to knock once again. Either she had been making too much noise, or the woman was headed out today, because the door suddenly slid open.

Mrs. Kakyoin made a startled noise at seeing her there, hand still raised, her own eyes widened in surprise, and her hand flew to her chest with a heaving gasp. However, when the woman realized it was only Kameko, her shock melted away into a warm smile. "Miss Higuchi," she breathed. "I wasn't expecting you this morning. Would you like to come in?" her friend's mother asked, stepping back to allow her entry. Mrs. Kakyoin was a tall woman with a lovely face that spoke much about her demeanor. Her red hair was always pulled back into a high ponytail, and her clothes were always nice and tidy, just like the rest of her house and household. For despite her relatively easy-going nature, the one thing the older woman would not tolerate was messiness, and Kameko had been on the receiving end of more than a few scoldings for getting herself or Noriaki all covered in dirt from some escapade or another when they were kids.

Smiling back at Mrs. Kakyoin, Kameko bowed briefly. "Good morning, Ma'am... Sorry to burst in like this, but I have to talk to Noriaki. And phone calls are getting me no where," she explained as she slipped off her shoes and stepped inside the home.

Ever since she was a little girl, Kameko had always liked his home. It was warm and lively and just felt lived-in, like a home. It had been a nice change from her own home. Neither Kameko or her father spent any more time in their little apartment than necessary, and it showed – though it had never particularly bothered the young woman.

"You mean he isn't at school?" the older woman questioned, a look of concern crossing her face.

Hesitating for just a moment at the revelation, her steps paused, and she shook her head. "I … No. Unless he changed classrooms, he wasn't in first period. Is he not here?"

The two continued to the kitchen, and Mrs. Kakyoin waited until they were both seated at the table with a cup of hot green tea in hand to answer. "He said that he felt well enough to return today," the older woman explained with a sigh, and then there were suddenly tears in her eyes. "I just don't understand him anymore, Kameko. It's like he's a completely different person," she exclaimed, a tremor in her voice at the admission.

Although she was feeling a little awkward – the brunette had never been good with crying people – the young woman stretched out her hand and placed it briefly on Mrs. Kakyoin's arm. "It's going to be alright, Anora," Kameko consoled her, using the woman's first name for added emphasis.

For a long moment, the woman didn't answer, her eyes shut tight and her shoulders shaking. Finally, she exhaled slowly, regaining her composure, and opened her eyes, which were red but no longer full of tears. "I know, dear. My mother always told me that boys change when they get to be a certain age, that it isn't _cool_ to love their parents anymore... However, I never imagined it would be quite so sudden," she said, and for the first time, Kameko noticed the exhaustion surrounding her friend's mother. There were deep shadows under her eyes that told of a lack of sleep, and her hair wasn't quite as smooth as it usually was, rife with flyaways, looking much more similar to Kameko's own hair. Just what was going on with Noriaki?

Brow furrowed, Kameko's face hardened. "You said he changed... Changed how?"

Wringing her hands, Mrs. Kakyoin glanced away, a far off look in her eyes. "He's just … different now," she said, her face scrunching up as though the words left a bitter taste in her mouth. "He's always been a solitary boy. Even now, you're the only person he spends time with at length, but I was alright with it since he _did_ have you... But now he won't even talk to you. He's become a recluse, always hidden away in his room with the door locked. He's barely spoken a handful of words to me in the past month, and when he does speak..." Here, the strain in her voice became more pronounced, and she let out a mildly hysteric laugh. "And when he _does_ speak, he's always irritable. The slightest thing sets him off!... Whatever this mood he's in is, nothing I do is working to change it."

With every word, Kameko's own worry grew. She had thought that hearing that he hadn't found a girlfriend would make her feel at least a little relieved, as shallow as that was, but now, she almost wished that were the case... Almost. Not quite. Though at least _that_ she would know how to deal with...

After everything they'd been through together, Kameko liked to think she knew him pretty well... No, that was bullshit. She _did_ know him well. He was her best friend dammit, and with everything she had learned about him over the years, she _knew_ there was no way he would behave like that towards his family. Her? Maybe – depending on exactly how bad she had pissed him off. But not his parents – he respected them far too much for that. Something was seriously wrong, something he couldn't tell his family about. And suddenly, Kameko was angry at her red-headed best friend for a different reason now. Clearly he was in trouble, big trouble. Why the hell had that idiot not come to her about it? She could've helped him.

Her fists clenched in her lap, and her mouth drew into a thin line. No. Could've wasn't good enough. She _was_ going to help him, whether he wanted it or not.

When she heard Mrs. Kakyoin sniffle again, Kameko's gaze softened, and she reached across the table to grab her hands. "We both know he wouldn't act like this for no reason. We're going to figure this out, I swear it, and once we get everything sorted out, he's going to beg for forgiveness for putting you through all this, promise."

"I … Thank you, but I just want my son back. I don't care about apologies."

Kameko smiled sadly." I know, Anora... I know," the young woman said, and afterwards, the two simply sat in silence as Kameko tried to figure out what her next move should be. She needed to find him... Obviously that was the first step, but the question was, where would he go? Noriaki hadn't been at school, and as far as she knew, there wasn't anyone he would hang out with beside herself...

How was she going to find him?

 **-\/-**

After a few minutes had passed, Kameko and Mrs. Kakyoin had gone on to discuss what they should do about Noriaki. The brunette had explained that she planned on trying her hardest to track him down but that the older woman needed to stay there at the house in case he returned at some point. Then she had gone on to question her further about how he had been acting and what he had been doing . Eventually, Mrs. Kakyoin had suggested she just check around his room for clues on what he might be doing, so that's where the brunette had headed.

For the most part, the room had looked much the same as it always did, the small bed neatly made in the corner, his game console and controllers put away under his TV set, everything nice and in its place.. Except for his desk. Unless he was working on an extended project for school, Noriaki's desk was always clear. He didn't care much for clutter himself, so it had been strange to see all the papers, pencils, and other pieces of trash spread across it and littering the ground around it. It was an obvious place to start looking, so Kameko had skimmed through all the papers.

There had been writings on most of them that didn't make any sense to her, things she had never heard Noriaki mention at all... Many of them talked about Stands, which she _did_ know know about. However, most of it was in relation to some man named Dio... Dio, Dio, Dio... From what she could tell – most of the writing was fragmented and incoherent, or the papers were torn, smudged, or otherwise destroyed – Dio was a stand user, and he wanted Noriaki to find some people, possibly another group of Stand-users. Unfortunately, those people were never mentioned directly by name or for what reason he wanted them found. They had only been referred to as the Joestar bloodline, which she supposed was a name, but it wasn't specific enough to help her.

However, there had been one saving grace amongst all the papers, something that at least pointed Kameko in the right direction. On the floor, next to the trashcan, she found a crumpled up map, and on the map, a nearby school had been by thick red marker with the word _**Joestar**_ scrawled in the margins in the same marker. It wasn't a lot to go off of, and she still didn't understand why Noriaki was doing all of this. But it was more than she'd known before. Pocketing the crumpled map as well as a photo of her and Noriaki for reference, the young woman had returned to the kitchen where Mrs. Kakyoin had been furiously scrubbing at the dishes and asked her if she knew anything about her findings. Of course, the older woman hadn't been able to tell her anything more and had no knowledge about either this Dio or the Joestars. But that was unsurprising considering that Mrs. Kakyoin didn't even have knowledge of Stands.

From there, Kameko had taken a cab to this other school since the distance was too far to walk. She had made it to the school around eleven in the morning to find a large group of students mulling around the grounds. Apparently, there had been some big spectacle with the school nurse not too long ago, and they were all being let out early. However, the brunette didn't have much luck in her search for Noriaki. That was, until she had shown the photo of her and Noriaki to a group of girls who all looked to be around her age.

"Ooh! That was that transfer student from this morning," a young woman with tall curls and too much make up had said.

"Transfer student?"

"Mhmm!" the same girl had continued brightly, and a few of the others backed up what she had said with confirming nods and a few words of agreement. A few had gone on to comment on how cute her best friend was and was she his girlfriend? To which, she had forced away the twitch in her eye and studiously ignored them.

"Do you know where he went?" Kameko had asked before the women could get any further off topic.

At her question, the group had glanced around at each other dumbly, and they obviously didn't have a clue as to where he had disappeared to. However, one towards the back of the group had finally spoken up, "I saw Jotaro leaving with the transfer student over his shoulder right after the big accident this morning." At once, the others had all turned on the girl looking much like the harpies they all were and began questioning what she was doing watching _'their Jotaro.'_

It had taken over five minutes to get them all settled down enough to give her this 'Jotaro's' address. Then another five to explain to them why she didn't want them to go with her to Jotaro's house and that _**no for the last time**_ she was _not_ interested in Jotaro nor did she even know who he was and please calm down. Seriously, if she had heard his name one more time, the brunette wouldn't have been responsible for the maiming of make-up caked faces. Already she was developing an irrational dislike for the man. At this point, Kameko just knew that she was going to find dearest Jotaro unattractive on principle alone. He was probably some vain asshole anyways, always flirting with every woman with legs if the size of his fan club was anything to go by... She wrinkled her nose disdainfully, she hated guys who did that.

And so, that was how Kameko Higuchi found herself standing outside the Kujo residence for the very first time.

 **-\/-**

* * *

 ** _A/N: Alright! Well, what do you think? Good start? I really am super excited about this one. I've been jazzed up all week about putting this online. I really hope you guys enjoy it as well. Now, as for updates, I can't promise they'll come super quick because life has been quite hectic around here lately. However, I do promise they will come eventually if you'll stay patient with me._**

 ** _Also, in the first scene, I mainly used Kakyoin when referring to him. However, Noriaki will mainly be used from here on out because it's his first name. Also, also, I understand a little bit about the Japanese name system and honorifics. However, not enough to really lay back on it reliably, so I'm going to just treat this like American's do first names and it not be so much of a big deal to call each other by our first names._**

 ** _Hope y'all enjoyed this and I look forward to hearing what y'all think._**

 ** _Thanks a bunch everyone!_**

 ** _ONWARD!_**

 ** _\- Alyssa_**


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N: Well, that took a good long while... I warned you guys! But anyways. Sorry about that. I've actually had 3/4ths of this done since I posted the first chapter but I got really busy for a while. And I've had the darnedest time figuring out exactly how I wanted to end this one. At any rate, now I get to explain a bit more about Kameko's Stand. So Be excited.**_

 _ **Thanks for the great response by the way guys! I'm so happy you've all enjoyed it thus far!**_

 _ **ENJOY!**_

* * *

 **-\/-**

 _ **Chapter Two:**_

 _June, 1981_

"It's not much further, I swear! For sure this time," Kameko promised as she ducked around another corner, her hand wrapped around Noriaki's wrist to drag him along behind her, while he let himself be led in silence, a bit of embarrassment lingering around him at her forwardness. At least _he_ could stop worrying about having been to forward with _her_ earlier. After all, they had just met, and she was already holding on to his wrist?

After introductions had been taken care of, the two had gone on to discuss more of the ins and outs of their Stands. However, as time passed, more and more people kept filtering into the park since it was such a warm and pleasant day, and though the redhead didn't know much about the other girl yet, it was not difficult to tell that she cared little about what everyone else thought and possessed no qualms with being as loud as she pleased. She would make these wide, animated gestures, and her expression changed often as she spoke. In some ways, it was refreshing. Such openness and enthusiasm nearly contagious, and Noriaki found himself matching her excitement at times in their conversation. However, embarrassment had won out this day as it was awkward to receive so much attention from the strangers around them. Noriaki wasn't used to drawing looks from anyone, much less people he didn't even know as manners had been one of his mother's top priorities.

With that in mind, he had expressed his desire to continue their discussion further away from the park so they could speak more freely. She didn't seem to understand what his problem was, but although she had given him a confused smile, Kameko agreed to his request and explained that she knew the perfect spot they could talk. Then, to his surprise, despite having just met him, the brunette girl hadn't hesitated to reach out and grab his wrist before heading towards a narrow – and questionably safe looking – alleyway.

Normally, that was not something Noriaki would've been inclined to allow. He wasn't the sort of person to run off to goodness knew with a stranger, and beyond that, the redhead valued his personal space. Yet, here he found himself: not only following this random girl, but also excited to see what else was in store for the day.

Ever since Noriaki had realized that summoning Hierophant Green was an ability only he had, the boy had been hoping to meet someone else with a Stand. He had done as much research on them as possible. However, mentions of Stands in any form of literature were few and far between. He had found out very little about them, and had yet to find a single scrap of information concerning the origins and manifestation of such abilities. Though he had always kept an eye open with the hopes of finding a Stand-user, Noriaki hadn't thought he would actually find anyone. And yet …

Here she was.

"And~!" she began in a singsong-type voice as they came upon another corner, where the pavement seemed to end. "Here we are," Kameko announced, rounding it before dropping his wrist finally, and the redhead idly reached down with his other hand and rubbed at the spot where she had touched him. The brown-eyed girl spun around to face him, walking backwards now, a grin in place as she bit her lip. "What do you think?"

"What is this place?" Noriaki asked, glancing around the clearing she had brought him to. It wasn't very large. Perhaps there was enough space for three cars were they pressed together. Buildings bordered it on three sides while the west side was left open. And a grassy hill sloped down away from them, leading off into some farmland and distant housing. There was a small, dried-up fountain filled with dead-leaves in the very center of the clearing, and surrounding it were unruly patches of wildflowers. In fact, the flowers dotted the entirety of the space in splashes of reds and yellows. Against the walls of the three buildings, a few, untrimmed shrubs spread out. It was wild and untamed and beautiful all at once.

Taking a seat on the edge of the dried-up fountain, Kameko plucked a small yellow flower and began toying with it before giving an answer. "It's an old prayer garden," she explained with a shrug. "My dad and I used to live up in that apartment." She was pointing towards one of the higher windows on the building to their right, and she gave a fond smile. "We had to leave though because there was something wrong with the buildings in this area, so no one can live here anymore... I kinda miss it."

Noriaki nodded absently as he took a closer look at the structures. Now, it was easy to notice the way most of the windows were boarded up and the overall abandoned feeling the structure put off. "I see."

"Anyways, enough of that stuff," she dismissed with another wide grin and began patting the spot beside her enticingly. "C'mon. I think I promised that I would show you Teen Spirit earlier."

Tilting his head to the side, Noriaki sat down beside her, where she had gestured, and raised an eyebrow. "Teen Spirit?" he repeated.

"That's what I named my .. erm... What do you call it?"

"Stand," the redhead supplied.

Kameko snapped her fingers and pointed at him. "Yeah, that's the one. That's what I named my Stand," the girl explained.

"Actually, did you know that Taro Cards suggest the Stand you have and what their abilities are? We should find out what your Stand's actual-"

"You don't like the name I picked out, do you?" Kameko questioned, her lip pouting out and brows furrowed.

Holding his hands up in surrender as she crossed her arms over her chest and began to scowl, Noriaki sweat-dropped. Had he really offended her so easily? It hadn't been his intention. "It isn't that," he tried to explain before she grew any more upset. "I only mentioned it because that's what I read about Stands. It's only the way they work."

"Well, I don't want to change her name. I really like Teen Spirit, and I already know what it does. So I don't need Taro Cards to figure any of that out," she informed him primly.

"Of course," the redhead placated, not wanting to argue further over something so trivial with her. It was a very small detail in truth, and only something he had found interesting. However, it was a little annoying that the girl wasn't even open to the suggestion. Regardless, he could not force her to do it if she didn't want to. Perhaps he would broach the subject another time... And that was the moment, Noriaki realized that he was already planning to see her some time in the future. It was a strange realization to say the least, but as long as there wasn't some detestable personality trait she had yet to display to him, he knew that he wished to speak with her again.

When the silence verged on being awkward, Kameko broke it with a squeaking noise and a blush. "I, um, that was extremely rude of me. I'm really sorry," the brunette girl apologized, biting her lip and averting her eyes as she tossed the yellow flower she had been holding into the pile of dead leaves in the fountain.

"It's alright."

"It's just, I'm not good at naming things, and my dad always laughed at the ones I picked. Except I really do like the name Teen Spirit for my Stand, you know? It might seem a little out there, but I thought of it.. for some reason a long time ago. And it stuck for me really well. So I want everyone else to like it too, but you're the only one who can actually see it. So-"

"It's really alright," Noriaki assured her, his earlier frustration with her dissipating and an amused smile creeping across his face.

Blowing out a relieved sigh, a grin spread across her face once more, and she looked back over at him as she tucked her knees up under herself. "Okay, good. My dad says I can be too aggressive sometimes, and I didn't want to drive you away after just meeting you." The girl spoke quickly and quietly so that Noriaki had to listen closely not to miss anything, and she gave a little nervous laugh afterwards, scratching the back of her head. "But yeah, Stands! Let's get back on track, hm?"

Then, before he could say anything else to reassure her he wouldn't be going anywhere – there was no way he would be leaving today without learning as much about her Stand as he could – with a slight, nearly inaudible hissing noise, her Stand, Teen Spirit as she had dubbed it, swirled back into existence. Now that he was closer, Noriaki could make out all the intricate carvings he had thought he saw before. They wrapped around the base of the Stand in swirling, if a little plain, patterns. "Ta-da," Kameko singsonged once it was fully materialized, and with a quick jerk of her hand, she twirled the small, ordinary-looking paintbrush around with her fingers.

"It's amazing," Noriaki told her honestly. He raised a hand as if to grab it, but then hesitated, thinking better of the action.

"Did you want to hold her?" Kameko held out Teen Spirit to him, her palm open. "I don't know if you'll be able to, but it's worth a shot, right?"

Noriaki nodded. "I've never heard about a Stand that manifested as an object before..." Carefully, unsure of what would happen if he just up and grabbed it out of her hand, the redheaded boy's hand hovered over the Stand. Noriaki's fingers just brushed against the handle, and he flinched back when Kameko yelped, her Stand disappearing as her hands flew to hold her side. Concerned that he had hurt her, he asked, "What's wrong?"

"I … I don't know," she told him with a frown, confusion spreading over her face, and she pressed her lips into a thin line. "That tickled."

"Tickled?"

"Yeah. It tickled my side when you touched Teen Spirit."

"You're not hurt though," Noriaki confirmed.

The girl shook her head. "No, I'm fine. It just surprised me is all," Kameko assured him with a smile. She seemed to spend most of her time smiling in some form or fashion. Then she offered her hand to him. "Here. Try again. I'm ready this time."

Giving her a dubious look, Noriaki said, "Are you certain? Maybe we shouldn't without knowing more." Since he didn't know as much about Stands as he would've liked to, the redhead was worried that his actions could end up hurting her, and though she was more than willing to go along with this, she knew even less about their powers than he did. From what he had seen of her character already, he assumed that Kameko wouldn't tell him even if it was hurting her. She seemed like a person who refused to admit something like that, no matter the consequences. Which, although it was foolish, he supposed he could understand. She wanted answers just like he did.

With an exasperated sigh, Kameko reached out and grabbed his hand, yanking it towards herself. "Good grief. Don't be such a wuss about this. How do you expect us to find out if we don't try?" the brunette chided him with a withering expression. Then, not letting him protest it further, the girl shoved her paintbrush directly into his hands.

Shocked by her brashness, Noriaki froze, not wanting to do anything that might hurt her as he held the Stand in his hands, palms open wide as the little cylinder rolled back and forth. The redhead's eyes shot over to Kameko, watching for any signs of trouble or pain. However, aside from the way she was squirming and giggling – not automatically a bad sign – she seemed completely fine, and relief flooded his system. "This doesn't hurt?" he asked one more time for the sake of his own conscious.

"Nope. Just kinda tickles like last time. Told you I could handle it."

Nodding, the redheaded boy closed his hand and shifted it into a better position to get a better look at it. It wasn't a terribly long paintbrush, nor was the tip very wide. It looked like it was made for finer lines rather than broad strokes. The top end of the handle was a little wider and stubbier than the rest, and it narrowed on the other end. Every time he moved the Stand, Kameko would jump and sometimes giggle, which distracted him from his scrutiny. However, to his relief, it didn't seem to have any side effects beyond that. Looking down at the little paintbrush, it was odd to think that it was actually a powerful ability. It even felt like a simple utensil in his hand, nothing special at all, aside from a small hum of warmth it emitted.

"Oh!" Kameko interjected suddenly, twisting around to dig through the back pocket of her skirt, her tongue sticking out in determination. After a second, she pulled out a small notebook and offered it to him. "Try to use it. You should make something," she told him with an encouraging grin.

"How does it work?" Noriaki asked, knowing that there was likely some trick to it that one needed to use it, and grabbed the notebook from her hands before flipping to an empty page. Most of them had doodles and sketches scrawled across them, but towards the back, he found a few free pages.

Tapping her fingers on the side of her leg, Kameko explained, "Well, mainly, you just paint. It can make anything I can draw, so it should do the same thing for you. Just start off with something simple.. Oh! And it makes it out of whatever you paint it on, so technically you don't even need the paper. But it seems to work best on it." She paused for a moment in thought. Finally, she shrugged and laughed a little. "Just don't get whatever you make wet."

"Why not? Does it not work in water?"

She shook her head no. "Not for long. I mean, it'll hold it's shape for a little bit. Maybe a minute? After that, it starts breaking down pretty fast," the brunette told him. "Kinda like when you hold a piece of tissue paper underwater for a while."

"That makes sense," he told her, nodding. _'Something simple...'_ Noriaki could do that. He wasn't the best artist by any means, but the boy thought he could make a few passable drawings. Taking a moment, he decided what to make before lowering the brush to the paper …

… And nothing.

"It isn't working," the redhead told her.

Frowning, Kameko snatched it out of his hand and streaked it down the paper, leaving a wide black track. "Yes it is," she denied.

"It didn't work for me at least."

"You must have done it wrong," she dismissed with a wave of her free hand. "My Stand is working fine thank you very much. Just keep in mind exactly what you want to create? That might do something. Again," Kameko ordered, and she pressed the brush back into his hand.

He flipped to a different page and did what she told him, but it produced the exact same result to his disappointment. He'd had the sinking suspicion that would be the case. Though he knew it was pointless to do so, Noriaki continued trying to make the paintbrush work for him. Finally, he handed it back to her with a shake of his head.

"I just don't get it. Why isn't Teen Spirit working?" Kameko complained, making a wide swinging gesture with her hand and shaking out the Stand as though it would correct whatever the problem that prevented it from working was.

Setting the notebook back between them on the side of the fountain, the young Stand-user thought aloud, "I think you're the only person who can use it – even if I was able to hold it." He nodded to himself. "It makes sense that you would be the only one who can actually make it work."

Her mouth made an 'o' shape, and she nodded a couple of times. "I guess so. Still... That's disappointing. I really was curious about what you wanted to make. It's amazing the first time your drawing comes to life."

"It was going to be a cherry," he mused.

A light flashed behind her eyes, and she held up a finger as though she'd just had an idea. "Hold on," Kameko told him. Then, picking up her notebook, she began drawing. Her smile was a bright one, and Noriaki matched it with a small one of his own. "I can manage that one just fine."

 **-\/-**

 _December, 1988_

The gate and fence that surrounded the Kujo's traditional style home was a little intimidating to be perfectly honest. This wasn't the sort of neighborhood Kameko was used to hanging around. She and her dad lived in a tiny apartment in the city, and Noriaki... well, his house was pretty nice, but _this_ was something entirely on it's own. Even if it was simplistic in design, it spoke of money and nice things, and she wondered if the inside was just as nice. Regardless, the brunette had never been one to let a little thing like anxiety hold her back. Especially when she had shit to do. Noriaki was in trouble, and Jotaro had been the last person to have been seen with him. So, it stood to reason that her redheaded idiot of a best friend was here. And she would be damned before she let anyone get in her way when it came to finding him.

So gritting her teeth, Kameko stormed over to the entrance like the woman on a mission she was and began banging on the door. "Hey, open up!" Her stomach was a mess right now, all full of butterflies, frogs, the works, and her mind wasn't doing much better, the way it was swirling with questions. Was he here? What if he wasn't? What if he was? Was he hurt? Was he dead?

However, everything silenced when the door opened.

"Good morning~!" a bright-faced woman with light colored hair and eyes singsonged. From her appearance and the slight, strange accent to her voice, Kameko could tell the woman was a foreigner. However, she spoke excellent Japanese so that it would be difficult to tell by voice alone. "Is there something I can help you with?" Her smile was practically glowing... For that matter, this _woman_ just seemed to glow on a whole, and she had this youthfulness to her that made it difficult to pinpoint how old she actually was.

Before she could stop herself, Kameko was giving a deep, respectful bow despite her urgency, and the brunette just knew that wherever he was, Noriaki would be smirking triumphantly at the deeply ingrained manners he had somehow managed to instill in her over the years. Shaking the thought off, the young woman straightened. "Yes, I'm looking for my friend, and I was told that someone named 'Jotaro' was the last person seen with him. Does a Jotaro live here?"

"Mhmm." The woman gave a prim nod, and Kameko released the breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. At the very least, she was in the right place... Now, if she could just find out if he was here or not... If he wasn't... "Jotaro is my darling little boy," the woman explained brightly, her eyes sparkling with pride at the mention of her son, pulling Kameko back into the present, and the brunette found herself returning that smile. What was it about this woman that put her at such ease? Though Kameko had never had trouble actually talking to people, she never really felt comfortable with most of them. At best, she simply didn't care enough of what their opinion of her might be, but with this woman, she felt like she could let her guard down. She was very easy-going. "You said you're looking for a friend?"

Nodding eagerly, Kameko shifted her weight, a little hesitant. "Yes, ma'am." This was it. If he wasn't here, then she would have to start from scratch, and if she had to start from scratch... Well, there was no telling if she would be able to find him at all with how much time she'd wasted.

Mrs. Kujo tapped a finger against her chin, eyes thoughtful, and Kameko resisted the urge to tell her to hurry it up or make any other impatient gestures even though she really wanted to. "Well... My Jotaro did come through here carrying someone earlier. That's who this first aid kit is for, but that was a boy. So I doubt it's your friend."

"No! That could be him," Kameko denied. "And first aid kit? Is he hurt? What happened?"

Realization dawning on her, the older woman smiled and knocked the palm of her free hand against the side of her head. "Of course! Silly me. I didn't even consider your friend could be a boy." She let out a light laugh through her nose, her lips pressed together primly. "Forgive me. I guess I'm a little too old fashioned like that sometimes; I assumed it was a girl."

A blush bloomed across her face, but the young woman ignored it, knowing it wasn't the time to worry about whatever assumptions this ditz of a woman was making at the moment. Embarrassment could be dealt with later when her best friend didn't apparently need a first aid kit. Besides, whatever this Mrs. Kujo was thinking, she was wrong... Mostly. Probably.. Unfortunately... Dammit. Sucking in a deep breath, Kameko asked, "Could you... Can I go see him? I mean, I'm pretty sure it's my friend. I even have a photo of us if you don't believe me."

"Well, he's unconscious ri-"

"Unconscious?" Kameko interjected, horrified. Of course, the students from earlier had implied as much, and Mrs. Kujo had said he needed a first aid kit. However, she'd assumed it would only be a scratch or bruise or something like that. What if he... She had thought... Well, she wasn't exactly certain _what_ she had thought, but for some reason, she had assumed he would still be _conscious_ at least. How was she supposed to knock the life out of him for scaring her like this if someone else had already done it? And how _dare_ someone else lay a hand on him? Oh it made her furious. "What happened to him?" she demanded, and the words came out more forceful than she had meant them. Tempering her voice to a politer tone, she added, "Please, tell me."

Mrs. Kujo gave a small frown, the first Kameko had seen mar the woman's visage up to this point, and shook her head. "I'm not certain. They only arrived here a little while ago, and my Papa, Jotaro, and Mr. Avdol took him at once to a spare room."

Stepping forward, the young woman reached out and grasped Mrs. Kujo's free hand with her own, ignoring social conventions that she had never much cared for to begin with, and she locked eyes with her, letting her know how sincere she was about this. "Please, Ma'am. I need to see him. He's... He's the best thing in my life, and I need to know that he's okay." Pausing, Kameko reached into her pocket and withdrew the photograph that she had brought. "See? This is the photograph I mentioned. This is us.. Is he..? I mean, is that...?" She was frustrated that the words kept refusing to come out right, but it was like her throat decided she didn't really need to talk after all. Or maybe she had been talking too much like Noriaki always accused her of, and she finally broke it. It was bound to happen eventually.

However, Mrs. Kujo saved her the trouble. With another smile, the older woman gave an affirmative nod. "That's the boy that my Jotaro brought back earlier. Your friend is definitely here."

She took a step back and gestured for Kameko to enter, and the brunette felt so relieved she thought she might honestly cry. He was here. She really did it. She really did find him, and oh, she was so going to break his nose the second she found out he was alright. And he damn well better be alright by the time she got there. "Come in, come in, Miss..." Mrs. Kujo trailed off meaningfully.

"Higuchi," she filled in as she stepped across the threshold into the house. "Kameko Higuchi." Glancing around the place, the young woman gave a little sigh of awe and unconsciously straightened her shoulders and stood a little taller. Boy, but she had been right about this place. It sure was full of swank alright. It was a bit subtler than she was expecting, but the Kujos were _definitely_ well off, no doubt about it. Inside, everything was kept nice and tidy, and the space felt open but homey. On the walls, Kameko noticed a few family photos of the woman and a boy whom she presumed was the ever-foretold Jotaro. Swallowing and averting her eyes, Kameko realized that maybe those girls hadn't quite been exaggerating as much as she thought about how cute he was. Coughing into her hand, Kameko turned her nose up with a stubborn frown. Whatever. He still sounded like a jackass, and she swore that if he had harmed even a _hair_ on her best friend's head, Kameko would make it her personal mission in life to make him not look so pretty anymore.

"It's good to meet you, Miss Higuchi. My name is Seiko Kujo," she introduced herself, sliding the door shut behind her and stepping around the young woman to lead her to wherever they had carted Noriaki off to. "Your friend is just this way, through the courtyard."

Kameko nodded and followed behind her, unable to stop the way her eyes wandered across the walls and over the furniture within the house. "Thank you. I really, _really_ , appreciate this."

"Of course, don't mention it!"

Mrs. Kujo hummed as she walked, and though Kameko didn't recognize the tune, she nodded along to the pleasant melody, trying to focus on that instead of the flutter tickling the back of her throat. God, but she was tired of feeling so nervous all the time. He really did owe her big for this one, and to think, he had the gall to yell at her the time her phone line had gone down after she had... Well, maybe he was a little justified there, but now they were _definitely_ even.

As they stepped up onto a wooden walkway to the guest-house, the young brunette heard some raised voices from the building as well as a fairly loud commotion, and once again, god damn it, her heart lept up into her throat, her breathing quickening. What was going on? Decidedly past worrying about her manners, she hurried her steps, placing a hand against Mrs. Kujo's shoulder to rush her along as well. _'C'mon, c'mon already.'_ Closer now, the noises and shouts reached a crescendo, and the hairs on the back of her neck prickled with some sort of weird charge to the air. Then, with a zapping sound and a word she didn't quite catch – something about an 'overflow', 'overwide', 'overdrive?' Whatever that was – the noise dropped off. Kameko grit her teeth. What. _The hell_. Was going on here?... Well, you bet your behind she was gonna find out, and in just a few seconds too since they were just around the corner now. Just then, to Kameko's ever-increasing frustration, the older woman put her arm out to prevent her from going any further, and with a cute tilt of her head, she placed a finger against her lips, telling her to stay quiet – not rudely either.

That was when she heard it. Probably, the best thing she had ever heard in her entire life.

"Why... Why did you save me?" came a voice that she had missed so badly her stomach cramped. He was alive! Noriaki was alive! Really, if she had figured out how to make her mouth work, she would've whooped for joy right then. Jumped too probably. So what if he was hurt as long as he was alive and well and... Wait. Saved? What did that mean? Snapped back into reality, Kameko, perhaps a little rudely – unlike the sweet but ditsy Mrs. Kujo – pushed the arm out of the way and thundered around the corner, practically foaming at the mouth.

"Who knows? I'm not really sure my- Who are you?" A tall, good-looking – not that Kameko would ever admit it – man, who she recognized from the photos in the main house, questioned in a dry tone, giving her an unamused once-over as she came into sight.

However, the brunette ignored him for the time being with little more than a glance at him, pushing past him and into the building, tuning out the voices that rose in protest. As soon as she saw him, Kameko froze, her heart lurching from either excitement or relief or joy or some combination of the three. Maybe she was just happy, she thought, her eyes running over him to make certain that he was really there and alive and alright. Noriaki was sitting up on the floor, wearing their normal school uniform and staring at her with a wide-eyed, confused, gaped-mouth expression splayed across his face. There was a small injury on his head, Kameko noted, which blood trickled from in a thin, lazy riverlette, but otherwise, he seemed fine and whole. A shaky smile wobbled across her face, and Kameko took disjointed steps forward until she fell on her knees in front of him, her smile widening to a full-out grin that probably seemed more than a little crazy. Not that she cared at that point.

"K-Kameko?" The disbelief in his voice was hard to miss. "What are you doing here?"

Realizing that he was indeed alright sent her brain stuttering back down the normal track, and his question, his disbelief – was it so hard to believe she would go after him? - transformed her relief into anger. Later, she would wonder if she hadn't been a bit impulsive, but then dismiss that worry with the self-assurance she was in the right here. Before she could stop herself, Kameko reeled back and launched her fist straight into his jaw to the shock of everyone in the room. A punch, not a slap – none of that pansy stuff for her, thank you very much – and the sting of her knuckles felt oddly satisfying.

"He-hey! What do you think you're doing to-" one of the older two men in the room tried to question her, grasping at her shoulders to pull her back when she looked like she might take another shot at Noriaki. She was certainly considering it. But, Kameko cut him off, shrugging his hold off as well, to yell at that.. that stupid _idiot._

"What am I doing here? What am _I_ doing here?" she shouted at him, voice dripping with incredulity, as she shook out the hand she had used to punch him with because, ow, okay, that sting wasn't quite so satisfying anymore and sheesh that hurt like a bitch. "I should be asking _you_ that question, you jackass! But no, okay, let's go with me. I'll tell you what _I'm_ doing here. What _I'm_ doing here is looking for you!" The irate girl punctuated her last sentence by jabbing a finger against his chest, making him wince. "You don't talk to me for months. You worry your family – and _yes_ I'm including myself in this – to death. And then I hear you're missing.. and, and _hurt_.. and... and..." Her voice broke towards the end there despite her efforts to hid how badly everything that had been going on had affected her, and damn it! She didn't cry! That wasn't normal. That was stupid, yet she just barely managed to choke them back, swiping furiously at the one or two fat tears that escaped.

His voice was gentle this time when he spoke, and though she was currently refusing to look at him, Kameko could guess at the concerned furrow of his brow and the frown she knew would tug his mouth. "Kameko … I'm sorry."

Oh, and why did he have to say it like _that_? She wanted to be mad at him right now, but that tone made it so, so hard. Without any preamble, the girl launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face into his shoulder. And if she got a little snot on his jacket, then he had that coming too. "You jerk," she muttered into his shoulder, knowing that he could hear her even if her voice was muffled.

At that moment, someone cleared their throat, and a little embarrassed at having been so stupidly emotional in front of so many strangers, Kameko reluctantly released her friend and sat back on her knees, a blush heating her cheeks as she bore a hole in the floor with the weight of her stare.

After an awkward moment of silence had passed, a gruff voice spoke up. "I believe introductions are in order... However, first, those wounds still need to be wrapped." Then, making Kameko flinch, the man shouted, "Holly! You brought the first aid kit right? Good, good. You'll need to wrap the girl's knuckles as well." He chuckled as he said the last bit, and Kameko refused to bury her face into her hands. She hadn't cared what people thought of her … uncouth nature before. And she wasn't about to start now, no matter how silly she felt right now.

Just then, Kameko felt a comforting weight settle on top of her right forearm, and she glanced over to see Noriaki staring at her, another apology in his eyes. And even though she planned to give him all sorts of shit about this whole ordeal later, any real hurt or anger at him was already forgiven. She had never been able to stay mad at him for too long, and with a small smile, the young woman placed her hand on top of his, watching as the note of relief crept into his eyes.

He meant more to her than he would ever realize... And part of her wished she knew how to tell him that.

 **-\/-**

* * *

 ** _A/N: Whew! WELL! She_ did _say she would punch him the second she saw he was alright. Kameko's a bit frank with those sorts of things. At any rate, what did you guys think? Still liking it? Let me know!_**

 ** _Thanks to all my reviewers and everyone who favorited or followed. It really makes me feel honored to be a part of this fandom. :)_**

 ** _I can't promise the next chapter will be out soon, but as I said last time, it will eventually be here. Hopefully not quite so far away this time, hm? And to those of you who read my other Jojo's Bizarre Adventure story, The State of Dreaming: the next chapter of that should be out later this week. It's finished already, but it needs a little editing._**

 ** _Until then, everyone!_**

 ** _ONWARD!_**

 ** _\- Alyssa_**


	3. Chapter 3

_**A/N: Heya! Here we are with chapter three. Sorry for the wait again. Anywho, today was my Christmas since my dad works on actual Christmas, so I thought I'd spread a little cheer of my own. I gotta be honest; I'm falling in love with this story the more I write it. I keep getting excited for all that's to come, and all the stand fights I get to come up with. It's gonna be great! Writing such great characters is daunting, but I'm having fun figuring out how they all work too! I hope you guys think I'm doing them justice :)**_

 _ **Agh! And stupid me. I have no idea what I was thinking time-line wise when I started this. I had it set in like 1979 which would have Noriaki be like 9 or something haha. SO, I've fixed that in this and all the previous chapters.**_

 _ **ENJOY!**_

* * *

 **-\/-**

 **Chapter Three:**

 _July, 1981_

"Wah~! So cool!" Kameko breathed, her eyes wide with awe as she stared at the Stand before her, mouth hanging open just the slightest as she continued her observation. Flattered by her approval, Noriaki's cheeks reddened a little from embarrassment. It felt strange to have his Stand feel so accepted by someone; anyone he had even _mentioned_ it to offhand before had given him a look like they thought he was insane. His mother and father had assumed it was only a lonely boy's imaginary friend.

After she had demonstrated how she created things with her stand a few times, something that still amazed him, she had asked once again to see his own. It was only fair after all, and he had found himself excited to show her anyways. So he had activated his Hierophant Green for her, and judging by her reaction, she was just as amazed by his ability as he was with hers. Seeing such powers for the first time was near indescribable, but it was the knowing you weren't alone in your weirdness – for lack of a better term – that really made the moment special, knowing that he wasn't just a fluke. That carried with it that sense of gentle awe.

At present, Kameko's grin stretched so wide it had to hurt her cheeks, and the girl sat up on her knees as she studied his Stand where it hovered in front of her under Noriaki's control.

"I love him, Noriaki!" she told him. "He's just like a shounen hero!"

Her comment made him smirk, and he wanted to show off for her and really impress her. "If you think that's cool, watch this." He rose to his feet and pointed out at the empty field. "Emerald splash!" At his command, Hierophant Green raised his hands, aiming quickly at the open space before dozens of little green gems shot out across the air.

Kameko jumped to her feet at the display and was clapping with enthusiasm. "He really is a super hero," she cheered, rushing over to his Stand's side and giving an excited giggle. There, she took another moment to study it up close, her eyes tracing over its face. She raised her hand then, head tilting to the side in curiosity, and though the brunette's intentions were clear, Noriaki made no move to stop her. She allowed him to touch her Stand too, so he would feel bad about refusing her.

The moment her fingers brushed the side of Hierophant Green's jaw, Noriaki felt it too. In fact, it was almost enough to startle him into calling the Stand back, as Kameko had done earlier, but he had been somewhat prepared for it and managed to refrain. Just like she had explained, the touch sort of tickled. It was a strange sensation to explain. His brain knew Kameko was not actually running her fingers along the edge of his face. However, the feeling was there, like touches ghosting along his face. Very strange indeed.

Apparently, Kameko was completely oblivious to her actions and any discomfort they might cause him because she only gave him a happy grin, and he noticed that her tongue poked out a little on one side when she did. "You're really cool, Noriaki."

"Thank you," he mumbled, glancing out towards the open field, which was sporting several new holes and had bits of torn up turf strewn around from his earlier display, and he took his seat back on the edge of the fountain.

As she sat down beside him once more, Kameko let out a little forlorn sigh. "I don't wanna go home yet," she remarked, leaning back onto her palms and staring up at the sky. By now, it was colored in hues of orange from the sunset, night creeping in from the east, and Noriaki knew he needed to return home as well. "My dad won't be back until late anyways, so it's not like it _really_ matters... He just doesn't want _me_ to stay out past sunset, which is pretty stupid really."

"That's not too unreasonable," Noriaki told her, glancing over at her though she wasn't looking at him.

The brunette shrugged a shoulder, and the corners of her mouth tilted downward. "Maybe not," Kameko admitted. "It's just … Boring... There by myself." Unsure of what to say here, Noriaki remained silent. He didn't know what her life was like, and it sounded like she spent much of her time alone if her dad was working so late. After a moment, the girl shook herself, "Ah, but I'm being whiny now. Thank you for today, Noriaki! I had fun."

"Me too," he agreed.

A thought occurred to her then, and she spent a moment rummaging around her pockets as she had earlier. "Hang on a sec," she told him. Finally, she pulled something out with a closed fist and offered it to him. "I should give you this."

"What is it?" he asked, staring down at her upturned palm. Perhaps it was a stupid question because it was clearly the stem of a flower of some sort... However, the redhead was baffled as to why she would be giving it to him. What kind of person gave away flower stems that had been kept in their pocket all day? It looked old by now, the edges wilted and brown in a rather depressing state. He couldn't fathom what kind of message she was trying to get across.

For a moment, she looked shy, glancing down at her lap as a blush crossed her face, but she shook her head and smiled up at him once more. "It's a wish," she answered.

"... It is?"

"Yeah. Like, you know how you're supposed to wish on dandelions and blow all the petals away?" He nodded. "Well," she continued, "I always keep the ones I wish on... If you really expect it to come true, you're supposed to leave it at the place where your wish was granted."

That was a … strange.. way to look at it, but he guessed he could follow her logic well enough even if it was rather silly. It was somewhat charming in its own way perhaps.. But still... "Why are you giving it to me then?"

"Cause you granted my wish!" she told him with a playful push to his shoulder. Then she grew more quiet again. "I asked for a friend, or at least someone who knows what it's like to have a, er, Stand. And now I've got it.. So I have to give it to you."

"Oh." Something in his chest squeezed at the words and the wistfulness in her voice.

"Can we see each other again?"

"Of course," he told her at once.

Another smile lit up her features, and Noriaki returned it readily. He knew right then that a smile suited this girl so much more than a frown ever would. Sadness just seemed out of place for her, and he hadn't liked seeing it on her.

"Good because you don't have much of a choice anymore, No-ri-a-ki," she explained slyly, glancing over at him from under her lashes. "You're stuck with me now."

Her words surprised a laugh out of him, and privately … Noriaki thought that wouldn't be so bad.

 **-\/-**

 _December, 1988_

Ten minutes later found Kameko with no more answers than previous to her rather dramatic entrance, and the brunette was getting fed up with all the quiet side-glances and tongue-biting she saw around the room. Very little at all was being said as Mrs. Kujo tended to Noriaki's head wound, leaving the older man who had pulled her off him earlier to wrap Kameko's split and swelling knuckles, and Kameko repressed a wince, casting her eyes away from the sight. In hindsight, such a punch, satisfying though it certainly was, had been a bad idea after all, and part of her felt bad about it when she watched Noriaki press an ice-pack against his bruised jaw – especially after she realized that he'd already suffered quite the head injury to begin with. She had thrown all her strength into that punch, and though he had deserved it, maybe he hadn't quite deserved, well, _that_. The man wrapping her hand, having already sprayed disinfectant on it a moment ago – and damned if _that_ hadn't hurt like a bitch too – seemed to take some enjoyment from her little spectacle at least, and a grin pulled across his features and gave him that same approachable, jovial look Mrs. Kujo had too.

Snickering, barely bothering to restrain the action at all, the older man shook his head. "Quite a right hook you've got there, little lady."

The comment earned him a sharp look from Kameko, but Mrs. Kujo chastised him on her behalf. " _Papa_ ," she scolded with a firm stare of her own, "don't tease her about that. I'm sure she didn't _mean_ to hurt her friend. She was just over-excited." Kameko raised a brow at that in befuddlement, but decided not to argue against someone who was apparently on her side.

"Ha! Who's teasing?" he asked and shrugged one shoulder. "It's true! I know a few _guys_ that would kill for a punch like that." To Noriaki, he added, "That's why you shouldn't piss off your girlfriend."

"We're only friends," he corrected at the same time that Kameko said, "He's not my boyfriend." The two shared a look after they said this – it was hardly the first time they'd needed to clarify for someone – but were interrupted by another bout of laughter from the older man once again.

"Sure, sure," he patronized, shooting her a patronizing look that had her wanting to show _him_ just how _killer_ her left hook was too. However, she restrained herself. Answers first. Then she could settle any scores that had cropped up. Waving Mrs. Kujo off when she seemed about to scold him again, he continued, "A man and a woman can never really be friends. Women just don't-"

"Oi. Old man," the boy her and Noriaki's age, Jotaro, broke in much to Kameko's relief. Well, that earned a few points in his favor. Kameko hadn't struggled the past few years to act _normal_ around Noriaki, to be _just_ his friend so that she wouldn't mess things up, to have some stranger come in and wreck all of that. "Don't you have more important things to think about?" The dark-haired man looked rather bored with the whole thing actually, adjusting his hat with a dull look to his eyes, like he wasn't _actually_ interested by anything the old man had to say. But again, Kameko wasn't complaining. She was just glad to be moving off that horrid topic. It was the exact _last_ thing she needed now. With how sappy she had been acting all day, there was no telling what sort of shit she would spill out.

Hoping to spur the discussion on to something she actually _did_ want to talk about, Kameko told the old man with a snide press of her lips, "Yes, let's touch on that, can we? I have a few questions of my own, you see?.. Namely, what the _hell_ is going on here?" Her eyes flickered around the room, a mix of frustration and confusion and anxiety in her gaze, lingering just briefly on the dark-skinned man in robes standing off to the side. He hadn't said anything since she stormed in here, and it was making her curious.

The old man frowned then as he tied off her bandage to keep it secured. Really, though whole room seemed to sober, aside from Mrs. Kujo who was happily packing away the medical supplies back into the kit. Scratching the back of his head, he explained, "Eh, listen... This isn't really something you would, understand. I'm sure you're a very smart girl and all, but-"

"Like hell it isn't," she shot back. Was he seriously trying to shut her out of this after everything she had gone through to find her friend? "Just try me."

From the corner where he was leaning against the wall, the dark-skinned man answered, "Mr. Joestar isn't trying to offend you, Miss. But this is a private matter." Briefly, she saw his eyes flicker towards Mrs. Kujo who hummed seemed to ignore the tension in the air and hummed obliviously. However, Kameko disregarded that, though she blinked hearing the name 'Joestar'. That had been amongst Noriaki's notes at his home.

Pressing onward, undeterred, Kameko gripped the wrist of her injured hand, running her fingers along the little indented pattern of the gauze, her frown morphing into a flat out scowl. "Yeah, and since it includes Noriaki, it includes me. So get to talking."

"Kameko," Noriaki began in a placating tone, his hand tugging at hers to get her attention, making her stomach drop sickeningly. "You really don't have to worry. It's not something-"

"You.. You're gonna shut me out on this too?" Kameko accused, hurt filtering into her voice. The brunette yanked her hand away with a glare, a pained expression flashing across her face before she could stop it. Why was he keeping this from her? Didn't he realize that she wanted to help him? That she had been physically ill with worry about him? Now, he didn't plan on explaining _anything_ to her, claiming she didn't need to worry about it all? That was such bullshit. It was infuriating, and she was having none of it.

Raising his hands defensively, perhaps picking up on her increasing irateness, he tried again, "It's not like that."

"It's _exactly_ like that." She jabbed a finger in his direction. "You haven't spoken to me in weeks. I _deserve_ a goddamn answer for that alone, Noriaki." Her voice rose in both volume and pitch, and though Kameko knew she really needed to shut up before she lost it completely at him, the girl was powerless to stop her running mouth. "I've been through absolute hell trying to figure out what I did to make you mad, but then, this was never about _me_ was it?"

"Kamek-"

"I'm not finished." She held up a hand, ignoring the way the others in the room were staring at her, focusing all her attention on Noriaki. "Okay, say you don't care about me. Don't plan to give me an answer. What about your parents? Your mom was pretty much bawling in my arms earlier-" an exaggeration, but close enough. "-because of you. And you think this is something I don't need to worry about? I really disa-"

"Shut up, you bitch!" Jotaro thundered then, boring into her with one of the harshest glares she had ever seen. Prickling at the insult, Kameko reared up to bat her own words back at him, but he cut her off first, "How's he supposed to tell you anything when you won't shut your damn mouth?"

The words were like a slap to the face, and Kameko flinched.

"Jotaro..." Mr. Joestar trailed off in a slightly disapproving tone, though he also seemed a little relieved her rant had been cut short.

With a frown, sounding a little lost as she swallowed her embarrassment over having been chastised like that in front of Noriaki, she answered, "He already said he wasn't gonna tell me anything... I can't just _quit._ " She hated the tone her voice had taken on, but forced the words out anyways. The worst part about all this was that he was right... Just a little bit.

"Can we have a moment?" Noriaki implored, glancing around at the other four. Kameko didn't bother checking to see how they all were looking at her. Probably it was similar to the way Jotaro had been, what with the whole crazy bitch vibe she'd been emanating. Not that she really cared what any of these people thought about her. Noriaki was the only important one, and oh god, was she seriously about to start crying again. When the hell had she become such a cry baby? Luckily, the others voiced their agreements briefly, Mrs. Kujo mentioning something about finding a set of pajamas for Noriaki, and they filed out of the room to give them their privacy.

She kept her gaze on the floor, refusing to look at him.

"Kameko."

She sniffled.

His tone softened. "Kameko, look at me."

Acting incredibly petulant, she shook her head.

With an exasperated sigh, he said, "You really are just like a child when you're mad, what with how stupid you get."

That worked, and though she knew it was what he had been aiming for with such a comment, Kameko broke her staring match with the floor to glare up at him, despite the glassiness of her eyes she didn't want him to see. "Jerk," she tossed at him though there wasn't any real bite to the insult.

"So I've been told."

Without any more preamble, Kameko embraced him again, as she had earlier, flinging her arms around his neck and pressing her face into his jacket and just inhaled his comforting scent. God but she was feeling terrible right now. Normally, this would be the part where he unwound her arms with an exasperated sigh and flicked her in the forehead for good measure. However, he must've taken pity on her because he actually returned the hug this time, and Kameko felt her heart beat a little faster as his warmth enveloped her. "Please, don't leave me like that again. I... I won't forgive you next time."

He pulled back then so he could look her in the face. "I … can't promise that. I'm sorry."

The words were spoken simply, plainly without any malice or intent to hurt, but they sure as shit did just then. Couldn't he just _tell_ her he wouldn't? Lie to her at the very least – not that Kameko really wanted that either, but she was inconsolable at the moment and was thinking a lot of things she didn't really mean – like any normal guy would. Why did he have to be so damn honest? And how was she supposed to take that anyways? His statement felt like another slap in the face, and dropping her hold on him, Kameko sat back on her heels, pulling out of his arms entirely.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she questioned, her face showing the hurt he had caused.

Here, he hesitated, a calculated expression flittering across his face like he was considering lying to her. However, despite what she had thought a moment ago, Kameko refused to let him get away with not giving her the truth and sent him a harsh glare. With an irritable twitch of his mouth, he glanced away from her after a moment. "It's not a promise I can make. I don't know what might happen in the future. There's … No," he shook his head, "I don't know anything for certain."

Her eyes ran over his face, searching for any actual answers after the vague explanation. Why did _he_ have to go? She was going with him if he thought he was going on some sort of … of.. of _quest_ or whatever the hell it was. He'd said he wasn't certain, but she could see in his eyes that he had something specific in mind when he said that. What was he planning? "Is this about that … What was the name?" she thought aloud, biting her lip in thought. "Right!" She snapped. "Dio! Is this about Dio?"

When she said the name, a switch flipped in him or something because he gasped, his eyes widening, and he leaned forward and seized her shoulders, yanking her forward so suddenly she yelped. Kameko nearly face-planted too, but at the last second, she managed to catch herself on her forearms. "You met Dio?" he demanded, his voice cold. "Where? Did he hurt you?" The questions were rapid fire, and he reached towards her and began pushing her hair away from her forehead with his thumbs.

That was _quite_ enough of that. With a grunt, she swatted his hands away and pushed herself back up. "What the hell? I'm fine!" she told him, noticing the sigh of relief he gave after hearing that. "Are _you_ though? That's a better question."

"Yeah, I'm fine now."

"Now meaning you weren't earlier?" she clarified, crossing her arms. This whole day had gone crazy right from the start, and the brunette was past tired about all these questions that kept cropping up that had yet to be answered. "What did he do to you?"

Ignoring her question, he countered, "How do you know about him then?"

With a roll of her eyes, she gave him a nonplussed look. "Oh, like I couldn't just take a peek at your room and figure out you're obsessed with the guy? I found all the notes. It's how I sleuthed you out in the first place," she explained. "Now, talk dammit. _I'm_ tired of my own voice at this point, and you know how rare that is, Noriaki."

He stared at her for a long moment then, warring with his thoughts – honestly, did he seriously think she was gonna drop it at this point? He should know better by now – but in the end, the redhead answered reluctantly, "He's a … Stand-user."

Shifting to where she could sit with her legs crossed, Kameko propped up her chin with her good hand. "Yeah, I gathered that much. And apparently a bad one if your reaction a moment ago is anything to go by."

He nodded. "Yes."

"The question is then: why are you helping him find the Joestars then?" Inwardly, she smirked a little to herself as the look of dread crossed his face. He had apparently been hoping she wouldn't have known that much about what was going on. Score 1 for Kameko; Noriaki 0. However, then another thought crossed her mind, and her lip curled back in a snarl. "He didn't threaten you did he?"

"He didn't have to," Noriaki admitted, a look of regret and shame on his face, and Kameko blinked stupidly at him.

"Then why..?" She shook her head. "Start at the beginning... please." At his look of hesitance, Kameko added, "I'll figure it out eventually with or without you telling me."

Finally, he nodded settling his weight onto his other hand, and a frown weighed down his features. "I met him while I was in Egypt … Before he even spoke, it was clear to me that he was very dangerous. However, at the same time..."

 **-\/-**

It took Noriaki a good fifteen minutes to tell Kameko the whole story of his encounter with Dio in Egypt and the fallout after, then another fifteen to calm her temper enough that he didn't have to worry she would immediately storm off and try to find him on her own. In truth, this was the exact reason he hadn't wanted to fill her in on any of this. He knew she would react exactly as she was if she found out that someone had attacked him and then tried to use him as a pawn. She would want to track them down and pay them back for it because that was the _only_ correct response in her mind.

And Noriaki didn't want her to get herself hurt – or killed, but he refused to even acknowledge that possibility – in the process. She didn't ever think these things through, and if she went up against Dio, he didn't like her odds.

However, he hadn't been able to withhold this from her either. Not after the way she had been crying earlier - despite whatever denials she likely had stored up if he called her out on it. If he knew anything about Kameko at this point, it was that she would rather shove her head into a blender than let anyone see that she could cry. It was part of that ridiculous tough-girl persona she had built over the years... He knew why she did it, but that didn't make it any less ridiculous to him. But when she had first blustered in here, the redhead had seen it, then again after Jotaro had yelled at her. That was when he had realized he had to tell her the truth. Beyond that, she never would have quit pestering him about it if he _didn't_ tell her.. This way, perhaps he could convince her why she couldn't go after him.

"Let's get the others back in here," she was saying, and Noriaki could see that he had his work cut out for him on this matter, the way her mind raced a mile a minute, already made up. "I wanna know what _they_ think about Dio, and what the game plan is. The sooner we get that all sorted out, the sooner we can _kick. His. Ass._ " As she sang the last part, Kameko flashed him a grin, looking closer to her usual self than she had since first arriving, and Noriaki felt his stomach twist up. This was bad; she was already throwing herself into the mix.

"There _is_ no plan. They might not even plan on fighting him. We don't know how much they even know about Dio... I just woke up a few minutes before you showed up."

"Huh? Why wouldn't they want to stop him?" she questioned with a tilt of her head, pushing some hair out of her face. "There's five of us and only one of him. I'd take those odds on any day."

" _Don't_ underestimate him, Kameko," he told her sternly. She never took things seriously enough, and he couldn't let her afford to brush over this as if it was some kid from their school she didn't like. "He's very powerful, more powerful than anyone I've ever met."

"Sheesh, do you want to stop him or ask him out to dinner?"

"Kameko," he scolded.

She lifted her hands in surrender. "Sorry, sorry. I know, okay? Whatever you think of me, I'm not totally stupid... But I still say we can beat him. You said Jotaro has a powerful stand too. I'm sure the other two have good ones too. With all of us backing him up, there's no way we'll lose."

Realizing she just wasn't going to listen to him, he shook his head. "It doesn't matter anyways. There's no way you're going to fight him _if_ that's what they're planning. They aren't just going to rush into something like this for no reason."

Immediately, her scowl returned. "Of course I'm going. And they will be too. This guy wants them dead right?" Noriaki's frown deepened, and he remained silent. He wasn't proud of what Dio made him do... almost do. "I doubt you're the only one he'll send to off them, and that means that they'll definitely want him gone. This guy screwed with your brain, Noriaki!" She knocked a fist against her head. "Don't tell me you're planning on just letting someone who would do that kind of thing go?"

"Of course not..." he admitted with a sigh of reluctance. "Regardless of what I do, I don't want you there."

"And I don't want McRonald's to take the McRib off the menu, but _that's_ still happening."

Why was she always so difficult? She knew what he meant, and why he didn't want her to try and take on Dio, so why couldn't she just _listen_ to him for once? It was times like this that Noriaki wondered how they had become friends at all. Sometimes it seemed like they argued more than they agreed. "This is serious. As of now, I don't even know where he is, but even if I found out, I won't let you go after him." He frowned at her. This wasn't something she could just bully her way into. It didn't matter that she just wanted to help; he _didn't_ want her to get involved.

 _"I'm_ serious _,"_ she shot back, persistent, and she narrowed her eyes at him. "And you're not gonna stop me. No matter what you're thinking in that thick skull of yours." At that moment, he saw her eyes light up with an idea, and she shot him a smug grin, hopping to her feet. Cupping her hands around her mouth to be a little more obnoxious, Kameko stepped out of the room and shouted, "Mr. Joestar? Mr. Joestar! I'm joining the cause now! We should compare strategy and details and stuff!"

Ignoring the minor-dizziness his head-injury caused, Noriaki pushed himself to his feet, stepping up behind her and clapping a hand over her mouth as he dragged her back with him, her legs bent at an awkward angle and her hands flailing as she struggled to keep her footing. "You're acting like a brat," he told her plainly. "So I'm going to treat you like one." Then he dropped into a sitting position, cradling her head so she wouldn't get hurt in the fall.

Her butt hit the ground with a thud, but she was actually laughing by the time he moved his hand off her mouth, staring up at him with her head in his lap, eyes sparkling. "Next time you do that, I'll lick your hand." Noriaki allowed a half-smile in response to her teasing. After a moment, though, she sobered up, her giggles fading and a frown slowly taking her smile's place. "Look.." She sighed. "Today, I am being a brat, okay? You're trying to keep me out of whatever you're planning... It doesn't matter what you say, you _know_ that someone has to stop Dio, and you're planning to help out with that if they'll let you. And if they let you, they better let me too because I won't take no for an answer. We've _always_ done things together. Can you blame me for fighting to stay by your side?"

"It's too dangerous. He doesn't know about you, and I'd prefer to keep it that way," he reaffirmed.

With a roll of her eyes and a huff, Kameko switched tactics. "Fine... Flip the situation, will you? Pretend that _I_ was the one that started acting really weird, and _you_ found out that it was because someone _brainwashed_ me – and seriously, that's goddamn weird enough on its own. But anyways, then told you that I wasn't gonna let you help me stop him... What would you do then?" Noriaki was silent after she spoke, glancing away from her again. They both knew the answer to that question, and he didn't want to give her argument any more credibility than she already had. However, his silence spoke just as many volumes as a lie or an answer would've, and she gave a little giggle. He nearly started when she grabbed his chin to make him look at her again.

 _"Exactly_. I know you're just trying to protect me, but there's no way you can convince me to sit this one out. I can help you. _You know I can_. You've seen what I can do with Teen Spirit, and if Dio really _is_ as powerful as you make him out to be, you are gonna need all the help you can get. And if you _aren't_ planning on going after him – which we both know is bullshit – then _I will._ I could take him." She smiled then in a way that made his heart do something weird – something he fastidiously ignored. "Let me protect you too, Noriaki."

"Kameko..." He trailed off.

"You're that serious, eh?" Mr. Joestar's deep voice sounded from the entryway, and the two realized that they'd apparently had an audience.

With a light blush dusting her cheeks, but overall undaunted in her determination, Kameko rolled to her feet, turning to face Mr. Joestar directly. "Yeah, I am," she agreed with a nod. "I know about Dio and Stands, and if you're gonna take down the guy who tried to make _my_ best friend a murderer... Then I wanna help. I _can_ help... You are going to stop him right?"

"Yes," the older man confirmed, his face serious. "Right now, I'm still trying to find out where he's hiding, but I can't let someone like that keep threatening my family."

"Of course not." Kameko nodded again. "That's exactly how I feel. Noriaki is my family."

"It'll be dangerous. When we locate him, he won't go quietly," he warned her, crossing his arms and leaning against the door frame. "Don't be so quick to volunteer.. You're young and have a whole life ahead of you. Are you sure you want to put yourself at risk by tracking down a dangerous Stand-user? What about your family? I wouldn't feel right putting someone else's daughter in danger. I'd kick the ass of anyone who dragged my Holly into a situation like this."

Kameko waved him off with a huff. "That's not up to anyone but me. I'm gonna find Dio with or without your help, so you're not putting me in any more danger than I'm willing to risk. Besides, it's just Dad and me.. Mainly just me. Noriaki's my best and only friend... No way am I letting this go."

"Don't be so casual about this," Noriaki told her. He wasn't happy with this at all – even if part of him wanted her to stay by his side no matter what was decided.

With another roll of her eyes, she snapped, "I'm not! Lay off already. My mind is set on this, Noriaki."

For a time, Mr. Joestar remained silent, sizing her up and considering what she had said. Meanwhile, Noriaki kept his teeth grit, hoping that the old man would refuse her, tell her she would only get in the way. For all her talk, he doubted she would be able to make any real progress without Mr. Joestar and whatever resources he had devoted to finding Dio. However, he had the sneaking suspicion that it wouldn't be the case, a suspicion that proved correct just a moment later.

Huffing a sigh, Mr. Joestar shook his head. "Well, I can't stop you. Hell, I can't even blame you really... But I would recommend you take the night to think about it at the very least.. Whenever we go fight Dio, no one's going to look out for you."

"I know that," Kameko protested, offended by the implication that she couldn't handle herself. "I can take care of myself!"

"Just listen," he barked at her with a frown, and she quieted down. "This isn't something you have to do.. Either of you," he added with a glance at Noriaki. "This is all something that you happened to get caught up in, so no one would fault you for letting this go. Don't give me an answer tonight. Think about it," he commanded her. His voice was firm, and Noriaki saw Kameko's shoulders slump a little bit with resignation.

"Yeah, yeah... I'll do that. Just know I won't change my mind," she warned him. Surprise swept through Noriaki... She had agreed rather easily to that, and he wondered what it was about Mr. Joestar that made her do that... Perhaps it was because the old man seemed to take her determination serious. Noriaki didn't know, but he was relieved that he had more time to deal with this."

Hearing the declaration, Mr. Joestar gave a devil-may-care grin and clapped her on the shoulder with a hearty laugh. "I would expect nothing less, Girly."

"Now," he continued, crossing his arms once more. "Who the hell are you?"

 **-\/-**

* * *

 _ **A/N:SO! What'dya think? Is it still any good? I hope y'all are enjoying it still. Chapter 4 is already half finished so that means it should be coming out sometime next June at my rate, huh? ;) Nah, I'mma try and be quicker for real, and I think that's feasible with the sudden bout of inspiration I have for this.**_

 _ **Thanks a bunch for all the support guys! I love hearing from you all.**_

 _ **Merry Christmas!**_

 ** _ONWARD!_**

 ** _\- Alyssa_**


	4. Chapter 4

_**A/N: Hot damn! This is a fricking long chapter! Hope y'all like it. Oh, also, can I just say that 80s slang is too much fun? I have a major appreciation for various languages and dialects, so I'm really happy I get to play around with it a little bit in this story :)**_

 _ **ALSO, it's only been like a month since I last updated! Told y'all I could do it!**_

 _ **ENJOY!**_

* * *

 **-\/-**

 **Chapter Four:**

 _August, 1981_

Noriaki had been seated sideways on the couch with his legs crossed as he read Saturday's issue of Jump when someone began furiously banging on his door. Roughly two months ago, such a disturbance in his routine would've been worrisome indeed. However, two months ago seemed so long ago now. Already, that furious banging had become something of a routine in and of itself, and today, the boy didn't even flinch, his mother calling out that she would get it. He flipped the page with an air of casualness before plucking another stick of pocky from the plate next to him, his eyes running over the figures of Tomo and Nayagi as they fended off another wave of Space Pirates that had boarded their ship.

"Miss Higuchi!" his mother enthused as she opened the door. "It's so good to see you again, dear."

Several weeks back, the first time he had invited Kameko to his house, his mother had been floored with surprise and delight, and since then, that exuberance had only faded a little, mostly due to Kameko's exasperating nature for someone as strait-laced as his mother.. Noriaki knew she had been worried about his lack of friends and companionship for some time now, so seeing that he finally had an _actual_ friend who he invited over regularly put her over the moon. And Noriaki was just happy that she could stop worrying so much about him; he'd always felt bad about that.

"You too, Mrs. K!" Kameko returned easily, though her words were somewhat garbled from something she was holding in her mouth.

"Come in, come in." She ushered the girl in, and out of the corner of his eye, Noriaki noticed the way she rubbed at the spot on the door where Kameko had been pounding on it and gave a drawn sigh. There weren't any marks or anything there of course – Kameko wasn't near strong enough to do something like that – but he could tell she was thinking about future repercussions if the girl kept it up. Waves against rocks and so on.

Kameko all but skipped over to the couch, leaning over the back of it to peek in on him. When she realized what it was, she grinned around a piece of pickled seaweed at him. "Ooh! I haven't read today's yet. Scoot!" Then before he could respond either way, the brunette vaulted over the back of his couch, bouncing onto the cushion beside him.

"Higuchi, dear, please don't jump on the couch like that," his mother requested, an uneasy expression on her face as she headed back into the backyard to continue working the garden.

"Sorry, Ma'am," she called over her shoulder, looking completely unapologetic and grabbing one side of his comic book before swallowing the rest of her snack.

Noriaki knew his mother hated when someone abused the furniture around the house. However, she still worried about chasing Kameko off. Noriaki didn't really have those worries at this point. At the end of their first meeting, she had told him that he was stuck with her now, and so far, she had made good on that promise – though threat was probably closer to accurate, he mused.

As such, he didn't hold any reservations about flicking her in the forehead. "Don't do that."

"Gah!" Her hand flew up to restrain his wrist and prevent further action. "I already apologized, didn't I?"

"Yeah, but not sincerely."

"And flicking me makes me sincere?"

"No..."

"Then why?"

"Negative reinforcement."

Rolling her eyes, she huffed. "Whatever." Ignoring him now, she tugged the copy of Jump a little further into her lap, leaving it somewhere between the two of them, and her eyes began greedily scanning the pages widening in shock as she picked up on the plot. "What happened to Nayagi!?" she demanded, alarmed at the sight of the first-mate's missing arm. "Dang it! She _told_ Tomo it was a bad idea to head into Raider Space while they were flying the Redeemer! Can we start at the beginning?"

Glancing down at the bottom, he thumbed through the pages he had already read and decided it wouldn't take too long to catch her up, so he shrugged. "If you want."

With another bright eyed grin, she closed her eyes happily. "That's why you're the best, Noriaki."

"There's no need to suck up; I already said yes."

"Now, when have I ever done a thing like that?" she questioned innocently, giving a snort of laughter. "You're so ridiculous sometimes." He shook his head at her and rolled his eyes though he wasn't quite able to keep the amusement out of his expression.

With that, she flipped back to the first page and began reading in earnest. This was the kind of thing they usually did together whenever she came over and the few times he had been to her apartment. Now that he had learned all he could about her Stand, and vice-versa, they had moved on to more mundane topics and interests. As it turned out, Kameko liked most of the same things he did to his surprise. He had always thought girls only liked dolls and dresses and such, but Kameko didn't like any of those things. Or at least she claimed she didn't – he had also figured out pretty quickly that she tended to lie about certain things if she was embarrassed about them in any way – but on the contrary, she enjoyed things like video games, shounen comics, and exploring places most would consider either frightening or dangerous or both.

About fifteen minutes passed in relative silence beyond the occasional page-turning and the cicadas buzzing outside in full forces, responding to the heat of the summer. By then, Kameko had reached the part he had been in the middle of when she barged in, and she gave a little wistful sigh. "I wish _I_ could be a Spacer like Tomo. That would be _totally choice_ to pilot a ship!"

"You could become a regular ship captain," he suggested, setting the issue of Jump aside for the time being.

"I couldn't d-" she cut herself off before she finished with a harsh shake of her head, her eyes a little wide. Coughing into her hand, she tucked her feet up underneath herself and gave a nonchalant shrug. "Maybe... But that's not the same as being a _space captain_. Space is so much cooler than the … water." Then glancing away with a huff, she muttered, "Water is bogus."

He caught the words and laughed at her, incredulous. "Why do you think that? Don't you like swimming?" He didn't exactly go very often himself, but he did enjoy it occasionally, during a hot summer day especially.

However, all the color drained from her face at the mention, and she looked a little nauseous. "No!" she denied. "Swimming is terrible, and.. and it's _dangerous!_ And just horrible all around!"

A thought occurred to him then. "You can't swim."

"No! I can," she told him, looking away in a way that told him she was lying. "I mean.. If I wanted to I could, but I don't because..." She sighed. "Okay. So I can't swim, and _no_ I don't want to learn either."

"Why not?"

Her face contorted with effort at his question, and it made him feel a little bad for asking. The subject was obviously uncomfortable to her, but she seemed to be struggling with whether to answer him or not. Finally, she glanced further away from him with another sigh, staring out the front window that viewed the street outside. She wrapped her arms around her knees as she tucked them against her chest.

Then Kameko explained, "When I was little, right when Teen Spirit was first manifesting, I was kind of _testing_ it to see what all it could do. Well, I figured out pretty quick what it did and how I could use it. My dad was always too busy to teach me how to swim, but it always looked so fun to me. And my mom..." She shook her head. "Well, anyways, there was this pond I found with my bike way out from the city at the back of some old guy's farm. It was really hot that day, so I decided I was finally gonna swim, actually swim since I never really counted that kiddy pool one of our neighbors let me use."

Noriaki could see where she was heading with this and frowned, nodding at her. "You didn't have anyone with you?"

She shook her head. "No... Who was I gonna ask? Besides, I thought it would be fine. I had Teen Spirit right? I could make something to float on until I figured it all out. Or, I thought I could."

Recalling what she had told him about how her Stand worked, his eyes widened. "The water makes it dissolve."

"Got it in one!" she enthused with a sardonic smile. "Yeah, my floaties disappeared, alright.. But not before I had made it all the way out to the middle of the pond... I thought I was gonna die."

"How did you get out?"

Blushing from embarrassment, Kameko said, "I passed out for a little bit.. The old guy that owned the farm... I guess he heard me shouting or something. Next thing I knew, I woke up in the grass, coughing up water and other gunk." She shivered. "It was so gross... So yeah... Not a big fan of water anymore," she joked with a slightly too-wide grin, trying to shake off her bashfulness in the wake of the story.

Unsure what else to say, Noriaki just told her, "I guess Marine Biologist is out for you then, huh?"

That startled a laugh out of her, and he knew that she was relieved to leave the subject behind. She preferred to stick to humor when it came to discussing things like this, and Noriaki doubted she wanted his pity on the matter either. In fact, he was pretty sure it would just make her mad. "For the time being! Diver too!" The two shared a laugh when a thought occurred to her. "Oh! Guess what! I meant to tell you when I got here, but I totally forgot."

"Hm?" He picked up the issue of Jump, which had been abandoned during her story, intending to find their place again so they could finish the story.

"So, I talked to my dad last night, and he agreed to let me attend Samezuka Middle-School with you if I want to. What do you think?"

Noriaki glanced over at her to find her grinning at him. "Really? You would do that?" It would be pretty troublesome to change schools so suddenly. Classes would start in just a couple of weeks..

"Yeah! Of course." She sounded mildly offended and gave his shoulder a push. "He said it wouldn't be too hard to changeover – though he does need a for sure answer by this weekend or else we won't be able to get my papers in on time," she explained, leaning her head back against the arm of the sofa and digging her feet under the cushions. "Plus, your school is about as close to our apartment as my old one, so that's not an issue either." Suddenly shy, she gave him a hopeful look. "Would you want me to go with you?"

Her words stirred his memories from school in the past few years, all the days spent alone during lunch and recess, the other kids all playing together and having fun while he immersed himself in his studies and played with Hierophant Green. What would it be like to have Kameko there, he wondered? He hadn't even thought about school starting back before, but now, attending with Kameko made it an exciting prospect. And the answer had been clear before she even asked. "You should do it," he agreed with a slight smile of his own.

"Yes!" she cheered, standing up on her knees and throwing her arms around him in a hug that had his arms crushed to his sides and a blush heating his cheeks. "It's gonna be so much fun! School's normally _so_ boring, but with you there, it'll be different," she enthused, pulling back.

"It will be," he told her. He was surprised that she would go to such lengths just so they could play together more often – returning to school would have limited their time together a fair amount – but he was learning that Kameko was quite determined when she decided something. "I hope they put us in the same class."

At that, she frowned thoughtfully. "I hadn't thought of that," she admitted. Then she shook her head. "I'm gonna say we will be, and that way it _will_ happen."

"Don't you have another wishing flower?" he teased her.

Turning her nose up, Kameko spoke to him like he'd said something incredibly dumb, "You can't use them on something like that because I already wished on you."

"I think you're just making up rules."

"Nuh-uh," she denied, crossing her arms resolutely. "That's really how it works." He shot her a skeptical look, and after a moment, the brunette girl burst out into a fit of that high-pitched laughter of hers before nudging his shoulder again. "Okay, so I just made it up, but I'm allowed to do that since I made up the whole thing to begin with."

"If you say so, Kameko." Noriaki shook his head with a laugh of his own. He didn't opt to mention that he had stowed the flower she had given him away in his night-stand even if it was something she had clearly made up.

Flapping a hand at him, she continued, "Anyways~! Even if we are in different classes, we can still hang out at lunch and stuff."

"That's true."

"It's gonna be an awesome year."

And Noriaki silently agreed it really would be.

 **-\/-**

 _December, 1988_

Once introductions had been taken care of – the first one for Kameko and a proper one for Noriaki – Mr. Joestar had given the others the all clear to come back. However, at the moment, _the_ _others_ consisted only of the dark-skinned man, who he explained was a fortune teller from Cairo named Avdol. Apparently, Mrs. Kujo had decided to start working on dinner at the influx of guests, and Jotaro hadn't even bothered, only reinforcing his asshole-ish-ness in her mind. The topic quickly shifted to Stands, and Kameko found she was pretty excited to talk about it with two people who not only believed her and could see them, but also seemed pretty knowledgeable on the subject.

Avdol, apparently some sort of specialist as far as Stands were concerned, sat there patiently as Kameko, and even Noriaki every so often, fired off question after question on the finer points of Stands. Mostly regarding their origins and limits and so on. Really, it was amazing just how _little_ she knew on the subject, considering she was a Stand-user herself. But damned if she didn't know next to nothing about them compared to him and Mr. Joestar.

Upon her request, the two had shown her both their Stands. Magician's Red was …. Well, to put it bluntly, it was the coolest goddamn thing she'd ever seen in her life. Like, seriously. How could she _not_ fall in love with a giant flaming bird-monster at first sight? That was everything she'd ever wanted to see in real life, and though she had reluctantly agreed that a demonstration inside the confines of a small wooden room would be a bad idea, Kameko was itching to see just what it could do. Mr. Joestar's was a lot more sedate and less outwardly impressive. It looked a lot like purple, spiked vines, _but_ it could make spirit-photos – mind you, she had no clue what those were, but they _sounded_ badass – and be used like a whip. Kameko had asked if she could call him Indy after she heard that, for which Noriaki had given her a firm whack to the back of her head that had her smarting after. Really, he was spoiling all her fun today.

As he recalled his Stand, Mr. Joestar glanced over at her expectantly. "So now we've shown you our Stands.. Turnabout is fair-play."

"Right." Kameko gave a quick nod, doing as he asked at once. Though she hadn't spent much time with him yet, she decided she liked Mr. Joestar alright. Unlike so many people she had known in her life, he had actually taken her seriously right off the bat when she said she could help. Not even Noriaki had thought she could – which she was ignoring, because seriously _what the hell?._

As Teen Spirit materialized in her hand, Avdol's eyes narrowed in interest. "A Stand manifesting as an object? I've read a few instances where it's been recorded, but I've never actually seen one myself. What sort of abilities does it possess?" His comment had her preening in satisfaction. She knew she was special.

"I wouldn't have pegged you for the artsy type," Mr. Joestar commented, one corner of his mouth twitching up in a smirk.

Kameko flicked her hair over her shoulder, the strands falling right back where they were before at once. "What can I say? I'm pretty damn perfect at everything I do," she shot back primly.

"That doesn't sound quite right."

"Shut up, Noriaki. Mr. Avdol asked me a question." Turning to the dark-skinned man, she took Teen Spirit and drew the outline of an one-hundred yen coin on the floor. "It's a paintbrush, so … It paints things – creates them, would be a better way to put it, I guess." Plucking the coin out, a perfect replica aside from being made of wood, she used her thumb to flip it over to Mr. Joestar."

He caught it with two fingers and inspected her handiwork. "Heh! That's a pretty good trick. Can't tell you how many times this would've come in handy when I was your age. Is it good enough to fool the vending machines?"

Delighted by the praise, she examined her nails with a grin. "Mhm! I used to do it all the time." Kameko deflated a little as a thought crossed her mind. "But Noriaki made me stop when he found out."

"It's stealing," Noriaki dead-panned.

"It's _useful,_ " she corrected.

Somehow, Avdol managed to keep them on track. "Can you make anything with it?"

"Sort of," Kameko agreed with a shrug. "It all depends on what _I_ can draw and how well it's drawn. Intention has a lot to do with it too. That's what makes the difference between, say, a bandage versus a piece of paper." Directing a smirk towards Mr. Joestar, she admitted, "So, yeah, I'm not really an artsy person. _Well_ , not by choice anyways. But I _am_ a goddamn superhero."

She earned a laugh from Mr. Joestar and a bemused look from Avdol while Noriaki just rubbed at his forehead like she was giving him a headache.

After that, the two grownups asked her and Noriaki a couple more questions about their Stands – Noriaki had opted out of showing Hierophant Green off in order to prevent any possible worsening of his injuries at Kameko's nagging insistence. Yeah, like hell was she gonna let him hurt himself to show off; never mind that she had done more damage than using his Stand would have ever caused – and other related topics, namely Noriaki's info on Dio. The story had Kameko bristling all over again, but she managed to bite her tongue until he had finished talking. Then, tossing a pair of striped pajamas at Noriaki, Mr. Joestar said dinner would be ready soon and for Kameko to join them. Noriaki's dinner would be brought to him by Mrs. Kujo since he obviously needed to rest. Then, they left the two friends alone once more.

"Well... I think that went well." Kameko nodded to herself; satisfied.

"Yeah."

Rolling her eyes, she said, "Don't brood just because they didn't immediately toss me out on my ass like you hoped."

He crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm not, and I wasn't."

Oh yeah. He was definitely pouting. His tone was all clipped, and if he brooded any harder, he was gonna give even Vegeta a run for his money. "Sure you are. Women all round the world are currently swooning over the magnificence of your broodiness. They're all gonna have little red-haired broody babies in your honor."

He flicked her in the forehead, and she swore, rubbing at the growing red spot. She was gonna have a concussion of her own before the day was over at the rate she was headed. "Do you even know what you're saying when you open your mouth? Or does it all just spill out like that?"

"Please. Like I could plan the brilliance that comes outta my mouth."

"Like you could _plan_."

Shooting him a flat look, she groused, "It's not fair. I can't fight back while you're hurt."

"... You really won't change your mine?" he asked, staring at her intently, willing her to back down just this once. The mood in the room shifted at once, and her shoulders tensed even as she made a grin cross her face. He was serious about this; she knew that. And she hated arguing with him over serious things like this. It wasn't like their normal teasing banter at all. But nothing he could say would change her mind, and he couldn't accept that any more than she could give in to what he wanted.

Trying to play it off, she raised an eyebrow. "About hitting you while you're injured? Wow, Noriaki, I never knew you were a masochist at heart." She looked scandalized. "Shit. I haven't been giving you a hard on all these years when I beat you up, have I?"

Well... If that wasn't the biggest pile of word-vomit she'd ever spewed. Dammit. Sure, Kameko realized she could be foul-mouthed, but usually, she avoided being crude or raunchy – especially in regards to Noriaki. What would happen if he ever realized she _wanted_ to do some of those things to him? And now her comment had her thinking about him having a hard on, and oh God, she really didn't need to be thinking about that at all. Especially not now. Shut up, brain. Stop blushing. Now, please.

Luckily, Noriaki didn't seem aware of her mental rant. "Kameko, you know what I mean."

While she shoved back the intrusive thoughts, Kameko snapped out of it and nodded with a sigh. "And you already know what I'm gonna say, so does it really matter?"

He was silent. She huffed another sigh, having expected that.

With a glance at the pajamas in his lap, Kameko asked, "Are you gonna want any help with .. uhm..." She gestured awkwardly to his lap, and a blush heated her cheeks. " _That_."

He was looking at her like she'd grown a second head, his mouth dropping open and everything. Ugh. He was clearly disgusted by the very idea of her touching him like that. Probably thought she was like a sister, and neither of them had been into those sorts of manga. "It's just a head-injury... I'll manage somehow."

Clearing her throat, she nodded and hopped to her feet. "Ah, right. Of course." Stop agreeing. "Just thought I'd offer, you know? Just wanted to remember I'm not always a bitch." Oh, stop talking please.

"Kameko … I know that."

"Sure you do," she agreed, stuffing her hands into the pockets of her school-uniform skirt. "That was for me." She shot him a wan-smile before heading for the door.

"Where are you going?"

"I need to grab something to bring to dinner... I figure I owe it to Mrs. Kujo after she put up with me back there.. Plus, she helped you." Glancing back at him, she said, "I'll be back soon."

But he didn't respond to that, back to ignoring her already.

 **-\/-**

"So, Miss Higuchi, tell me about yourself," the kind voice of Mrs. Kujo drifted across the table accompanied by an encouraging smile and the clinking of chopsticks against their plates as they ate.

Glancing up from the plate of fried mackerel and stir-fry, Kameko spoke with her mouthful without thinking. "Me?" Then, remembering her manners, she took a moment to swallow the huge bite she'd just taken. The food was so good, she just couldn't _help_ but chow down like that. Mrs. Kujo was one hell of a cook. She'd even give Mrs. Kakyoin a run for her money. Her tongue darted out to catch the bit of sauce in the corner of her mouth, and she tapped her chopsticks against her plate thoughtfully. "What do you want to know?" she asked finally. Now, Kameko _could_ talk about pretty much anything for hours on end given the opportunity, and despite what decorum called for, the subject of herself was no exception... However, for once, she _was_ trying to make a good impression, and that called for a little politeness.

"Oh, well, just the basics, I suppose," the woman supplied before taking another bite of her own meal.

Mr. Avdol was also paying attention to Kameko, and even Mr. Joestar glanced up from his food every so often to show he was listening – though Kameko reckoned they were just trying to maintain the same politeness she was. Jotaro, however, gave them all the cold shoulder, not paying them the slightest attention, invested in finishing his food so he could get back to freezing water with his stare or whatever the hell he did in his free time. Ugh... She _really_ didn't like that guy – even if he was stupid attractive, her mind supplied infuriatingly.

"Basics huh?" Kameko drew out, propping her chin up on her hand, elbow on the table. "Well, I'm a third year in high school. Me and Noriaki attend Hemuji High together, of course. Eh... basic, basic.. I live in an apartment in the city with my dad, and my favorite hobby is art." That wasn't too in depth was it? Eh, whatever. That was as basic as it got.

"How wonderful!" Mrs. Kujo enthused, closing her eyes with her smile. "I'd love to see your work sometime." A wistful note entered her voice, and a dreamy look was in her eyes. "My Jotaro used to be really good at drawing too!" Here, her lips pouted out in thought, and her brow furrowed. "Mama still has them somewhere around here... I would _never_ throw out something so precious, of course." She directed her attention towards her son as her face lit up with an idea. "You should draw something again! I'll put it up on the fridge where everyone can see it."

Without skipping a beat, Jotaro returned coolly, "Don't care."

Kameko couldn't decide whether he was being a prick to his mother, or she was just a little too crazy.. However, she opted for the former simply because she didn't like the guy. Mrs. Kujo was really sweet, and Kameko couldn't help the bit of a soft spot for the woman she was developing.

"Awe!" Mrs. Kujo protested. "But mama loves to see her little boy use all his talents!"

"I'm done," Jotaro said, getting up from the table without excusing himself and ignoring his mother. "Later."

"Jotaro!" Mr. Joestar called then, slamming his gloved hand – and speaking of _that,_ Kameko was outrageously curious about it. Why wear gloves and short sleeves? She would definitely ask about that – against the table and making it shake from the abuse. "You're leaving without your mother excusing you from the dinner table? Sit back down here this instant!"

Swatting his arm with a frown, Mrs. Kujo scolded, "Papa! Let him go. Jojo is a very busy boy; if he needs to leave the table, then that's completely fine." She nodded to herself while Kameko sweatdropped. She was very... _supportive_ of her son. Avdol only continued eating his meal, apparently used to the way the two carried on, a bemused look on his face.

"If _I'd_ done something like that at his age, Granny Erina would've definitely boxed my ears ." He pointed a finger at her. "Hell, I would've boxed _your_ ears if _you_ did that. You're far too lenient with that boy, Holly!"

Crossing her arms and glancing away with a hmph, Mrs. Kujo shook her head obstinately. "Nuh-uh! Mama would definitely have stopped you from doing that."

"Your mother always supported me on things like that!"

At that, Mrs. Kujo gave a light, tinkling laugh. "Now, Papa, don't lie."

Frustrated, Mr. Joestar started flexing and unflexing his hands, gritting his teeth as he stared a whole in the back of his daughter's head. As he did, Kameko noticed a bizarre clicking noise. Was that really coming from his hand? Unable to stop herself and not really caring to at this point, she pointed at his hand and asked after swallowing another bite, "What'd you do to your hand?"

Dropping the argument with his daughter since he apparently had no comeback anyways, the older man glanced over at her. "Eh? Oh," he said, realizing what she had asked. "I lost it a long time ago." He pulled off the glove to reveal a metal prosthetic underneath, and Kameko dropped her chopsticks, eyes wide. Thinking he'd skeeved her out or something, he added sheepishly, "I know that's a bit grim, but -"

He'd started to pull the glove back on when Kameko reached across the table to grab his wrist and stop him. "No!" she asserted. "No, it's not. I just think that's so cool!" When she realized she was in his personal space – as well as pretty much laying on Mrs. Kujo's table – Kameko hopped back with an abashed and apologetic grin. "Sorry about that... I've just never seen anything like that before."

Avdol laughed at the eagerness in her voice. "I've never seen a girl, or anyone really, so excited about a missing appendage. Usually, a girl your age would run screaming from something like that."

"Not _all_ girls," Kameko corrected. "You can't forget that some girls grow up to be nurses. Plus, that's not really the kinda thing that barfs me out." The dark-skinned man only laughed again at that, and Mr. Joestar was smiling too. Gesturing at his hand again, Kameko asked, "Can I?"

Shrugging, he nodded, and Kameko walked on her knees to where she could sit next to him as he tugged the glove off completely and dropped it onto the table, holding his hand up for her to inspect. "Knock yourself out," Mr. Joestar complied, wiggling his fingers and making that clicking noise again.

By then, it was clear the meal was over, so Mrs. Kujo began collecting their plates, mentioning something about preparing one for Noriaki before heading off into the kitchen. Mr. Avdol sat by and sipped on some sake they'd had with their meal while Kameko enjoyed her inspection. The brunette girl poked and prodded different parts of his hand, giving a startled giggle when he moved one of his fingers after she grabbed it, which had Mr. Joestar and Mr. Avdol both guffawing. Apparently, she'd sounded funny or something. In all honesty, Kameko didn't even care they were laughing at her. It didn't feel like they were trying to be mean or anything like the other girls that had laughed at her in school. Besides, she was too caught up in what she was doing. Things like this had never made her squeamish, and to the contrary, she found them kinda cool – okay, _really_ cool. The metal was smooth and cold to the touch, and Mr. Joestar seemed to have perfect control of all his digits. Who knew prosthetics had progressed so far?

After a little time had passed, she glanced up at him with an excited grin. "So... What's the story here?"

"Huh?"

"Well, I'm just curious how you lost it... I mean, you don't exactly _look_ like a factory worker, so I'm assuming it's not something like that."

"You wanna know?" He asked, with a bit of a frown as he ran the finger of his free hand around the rim of his glass. "It's a little long."

"Perfect!" Kameko enthused. "That means it's _gotta_ be a good one! I'll bet you were part of some big military ops back in the war! Like a general or something."

The two men laughed again, and the sound made Kameko's heart a little warm. Even though she'd really just met them, it felt good to talk and laugh with two people who knew what she felt like since they all had weird powers. Taking another sip of his sake, one hand cupping the bottom of the choko the other around the back, Mr. Avdol remarked, "You know, Miss Higuchi? For a Japanese girl, you don't have any qualms asking people what you want to know."

Blushing guiltily, Kameko sat back on her knees in the now-vacant spot beside Mr. Joestar and drew her hands back into her lap. "I'm not being too forward, am I?"

Mr. Joestar waved her off, downing an entire cup of sake. Not waiting for him to ask, Kameko refilled his cup for him and offered some to Mr. Avdol too. "I don't mind. It _is_ a good story, I suppose. Seems a little crazy looking back at it all," he admitted with a huff of amusement. Scratching his chin, he mumbled, "Where to begin ..." Finally, he nodded to himself and grinned. "So, girly, do you know anything about the Stone of Aja?"

 **-\/-**

When Kameko returned to Noriaki's room later that night, the first thing he noticed was how excited she seemed to be. She was practically bouncing in place as she slid the door open. He'd seen her like that quite a lot over the years as Kameko was easily excitable. Personally, the redhead had never understood just _what_ was so exciting about say watching rain fall from the roof of the school or having a cicada land on your arm. However, it never failed to amuse – and usually exasperate depending on the circumstances... Tonight was different though, and when her eyes landed on him and she realized he was still awake and indeed sitting up on his futon, that grin of hers slipped away and left behind a hesitant frown. That made his own frown deepen as he remembered he was supposed to be ignoring her after their fight earlier.

The room was dark already, as Mrs. Kujo had retrieved his empty dinner plate over two hours ago by his count, so the only light came from the moon casting shadows through the windows and bathing the room in sober blue. However, it was enough light for the two to see each other fairly well. Truthfully, Noriaki had expected Kameko hours ago, but as time passed, he wondered if perhaps she was angry enough at him too that she had decided to ignore him entirely. It wasn't her normal MO. But in the past year or so, even as close as they were, she'd been getting harder for him to read. Somehow, she'd finally learned how to keep her mouth shut about the things she didn't want other people to know, so he didn't get to hear everything she was thinking anymore. And after everything that had happened with Dio and their argument before dinner, Noriaki thought it was entirely possible that she would avoid him for a while.

But here she was – a blanket draped over her arm and wearing... Wait... What _was_ she wearing?

It was _short_. Uncomfortably so. Shorter than her school skirt, or really anything he'd ever seen her wear, and it showed off almost the entirety of her legs, hanging just above mid-thigh, and was made of some thin black material. The neck dipped low too, but Kameko had her regular hoodie on over that, and Noriaki swallowed hard, inwardly chastising himself for letting his eyes wander like that. She was his _friend_ for god's sake. His best friend. Blushing bright red, Noriaki choked out, "What the hell is that?"

"Huh? I-" she seemed to realize what he was talking about all at once. Well, at least Kameko was embarrassed too. Or at least it seemed that way how she glanced away from him and tugged the sides of her jacket together with her free hand. "Mrs. Kujo has a surprisingly sadistic side," she mumbled, hurrying in and shutting the door behind her to block out some of the light.

"What?"

Taking a seat beside him, Kameko unfolded her blanket and arranged it over her long legs, much to his relief. "Mr. Joestar was telling me this really amazing story after dinner, but it was getting kinda late. So then, Mrs. Kujo said she wanted to do my hair and stuff." Here she pointed her head, and Noriaki noticed just then that her short strands had somehow been woven into a passable top-knot with her bangs and a few fly-aways framing her face. "Then she _insisted_ on giving me some Pjs to sleep in – because apparently it isn't _lady like_ to sleep in your clothes, even though I _told_ her it was fine... And uh, this was the only thing she had that really fit my, erm..." She gestured awkwardly around her chest. "Figure," Kameko finished with none of her usual bravado. Well, he could take solace that he wasn't the only one who felt weird about this whole situation. "I _did_ manage to snag my jacket though," she rebounded with a shrug and a bit of a grin. "It's too damn cold to parade around in spaghetti straps."

If nothing else, this little … whatever it was, had broken the tense silence he had expected to be there when she returned. He wasn't quite sure whether he wanted to thank or scold Mrs. Kujo for it yet. Remembering the way she was practically bouncing when she opened the door, Noriaki asked, "What had you so excited a minute ago? Not getting your jacket, was it?"

She waved him off. "Nah! Though that _is_ plenty reason to be excited." She wiggled her eyebrows at him, and he flicked her in the forehead. "Gah! So mean!"

"What was it then?" he asked, ignoring her protests.

Bouncing back, her eyes lit up once more, and she made wide, sweeping gestures as she spoke. "Mr. Joestar told me the absolute, most bangin' story I've ever heard in my _life_. Shit, I'm not sure if I can even believe something like that, but if it's true..." She shook her head. "Shit," she repeated, another grin lighting up her face as she trailed off. Something in his chest eased at the sight – even if he hadn't been the one to cause it. He hadn't liked upsetting her earlier, even if he had a good reason to.

He wanted to tell her to leave. She _needed_ to leave. But he also wanted her with him if and when something with Dio panned out... It was a paradox, he knew, but it was how he felt. For years now, Kameko had been his best friend, and now that the fog in his head that was Dio had gone, he realized how much he had missed her the past couple of months. Since she arrived at the Kujo residence, he had been completely preoccupied by trying to make her leave, and he had pushed away anything else involving her... Now though, he was considering what it would be like if she stayed. She wasn't weak, he knew. Kameko had never been one to let other people – not even him – take care of her, but that didn't mean she was invincible. Despite that worry though, his traitorous mind was whispering that it would be nice to have her there too.. He didn't plan on telling her that of course. Just because he might want it didn't mean he was willing to put her in danger to get it, but the thought was still there.

In the silence that fell between them – Kameko lost in whatever story Mr. Joestar had told her, and Noriaki considering the direction their lives were heading in as well as everything she had said to him earlier when they were fighting – one thing in particular really stuck out to him then, and shame filled his heart as he stared down at his lap.

"Kameko?" She hummed to let him know she was listening, though her attention wasn't on him at all. "Was my mother really bawling earlier?"

"She... Well, I wouldn't say bawling exactly... That was mainly for affect since you were being such a big time... well, anyways, it wasn't exactly true," Kameko answered, regret thick in her tone. She'd known that was a low blow. He respected his parents above anyone else, and to think that he'd upset them to that point, of his own volition or otherwise, disturbed him. "But.. She did.. She's just worried about you, Nori... We all were." She sniffed here, and he could see the exhaustion lining her face. Kameko always seemed so bright and chipper and, well, invulnerable when it came to her emotions, whether she was happy or angry. Seeing her like this was painful to him too, knowing he'd caused that. Dio had caused so much pain... He could understand why Kameko wanted to fight him all too well.

When he didn't say anything, Kameko cleared her throat and continued, "You should call them. First thing tomorrow. At least to tell them you're alright."

"Yeah," he agreed with her. That was the least he would do. "What about your dad?"

Huffing, Kameko crossed her arms. "He doesn't care. You know him. He's out with _Nina_ today, and tomorrow, and probably the week after that too."

"Kameko, you know he ca-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know." The brunette flapped her hand at him before he could get the sentence out. They'd been through this before. When it came to parents, the two had polar opposite opinions. "He tries... It just doesn't feel like it sometimes." Noriaki didn't have a come back to that, but Kameko kept talking a moment later anyways. "Hey, Noriaki..?"

"Hm?"

"Can I make a weird request?"

Put on guard a little, Noriaki eyed her in suspicion. "Sure..."

"Can I..." She cleared her throat again. "I wanna lay by you. Just for a second!" she amended at once when he raised an eyebrow at her.

"I guess," he told her slowly, scooting over to make space for her on the futon though it was only meant for one person really. "Just don't hog all the room." he laid back on his pillow.

She swatted him on the chest as she siddled up next to him. "I'm not that fricking fat, you asshole," she scolded him, though she was smiling too. With her head laid on his shoulder, Noriaki wasn't sure what to do with the arm she was laying on, so he opted to keep perfectly still as she slung her own arm around his ribs, pulling him into a semi-embrace. Part of him, the majority of him, felt awkward with her so close to him, pressed against him like that. If someone were to walk in on them at that moment, they probably looked pretty intimate. They hadn't laid in a bed together like this since they were kids and didn't know any better. However, another part of him told him he could relax. After all, it was only Kameko. She didn't have any ill intent towards him; he could trust her, in other words.

"I'll move in a minute," she promised, "but … I was just so scared the past week, past month or two really... I know it's stupid, and selfish, especially after finding out what _you've_ been going through this whole time, but when you kept ignoring me, I .. I thought you had a girlfriend or something. And that... That you didn't want some betty hanging around to screw things up for you."

Maybe it wasn't the right time for it since he could hear how vulnerable she sounded, but she startled a laugh out of him with that. "That's the first place your mind went?"

"It's not funny!" she insisted, hiding her face in the crook of his shoulder.

"It's just strange is all."

Her words were muffled by his shirt, but he made them out with little difficulty. "You act like it's impossible or something... it's not like you're _not_ attractive or anything."

Feeling flattered and a little smug at the compliment, Noriaki carefully avoided responding to that part. "You really think I'd just drop you if I got a girlfriend?" His tone was a bit more serious now. How could she even worry about something like that? It was ridiculous, but it made him wonder if she really thought him capable of something like that.

When she raised her head to look at him, there was an annoyed stubborn set to her features. "I don't know … It's never happened before, so it's not like I have experience to draw from."

His frown deepened at the response. "I thought you'd have more faith in me than that."

"I do... Or at least, in my head I do, but … I get a little stupid when it comes to you," she told him with such honesty that it made his heart beat faster. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

Sighing, he rubbed a soothing circle on her back though he wasn't aware of when his hand had moved. "Listen then. I promise I wouldn't just get rid of you for something stupid as a girlfriend. If she doesn't like you, then she's not worth keeping anyways... Well, if she can't _tolerate_ you at least."

"Like is a bit of a stretch, huh?" A different sort of smile came over her face then. "Alright.. I'll hold you to that."

More silence as she settled back down, her cheek pressed against his shoulder. Her steady breathing was calming, and Noriaki found himself dozing off after the eventful day he'd had. Plus, his injuries made him tired too.

"Noriaki?"

"Yeah?"

"What's next for us?"

Confused, his eyes opened briefly. "What do you mean?"

"With Dio," she clarified. "What's gonna happen when they figure out where that dickweed is hiding? I mean, we'll leave immediately right? I'd feel better if we could get rid of him as soon as possible... A guy like that... he shouldn't be allowed to live."

Hesitating, he let his eyes fall shut again, not wanting to have this conversation with her right now. "They might want to prepare for a while … I would."

"Well, whatever happens, I'm with you."

"Only because you won't let me stop you."

"Damn skippy, buck-a-roo," she agreed. "You're stuck with me, No-ri-a-ki."

They were the same words she'd said to him at the end of their very first meeting … He hadn't known then exactly how truthfully they held up, but now was different. Even though he would much rather her stay behind where Dio would _never_ get a chance to touch her, and if he could, he'd make her take the words back... But Noriaki could not deny the comfort those words brought, and the fear in his heart Dio had brought about eased just the slightest, knowing she was ready to stick it out with him, no matter what happened.

Tomorrow, he could remind himself that there was no way he'd actually let her go... But for tonight, he allowed the words to lull him into a peaceful slumber.

At the same time though, a whole new fear was taking hold in him... He'd known what Kameko meant to him for years and years... But it was only now when she was stubbornly determined to put herself in danger that he realized how much more that might be.

 **-\/-**

* * *

 _ **A/N: For whatever reason, I think I've been in a romancy mood lately. Or all my stories happen to be reaching that point simultaneously... Hmm. But I don't know! I know it wasn't**_ **huge _progress or anything. But I thought it was pretty sweet :) Did y'all enjoy it any!_**

 ** _Thanks so much for all the support guys! You are the ones who inspire me to keep this up! Feel free to review or drop me a line if you have any questions or concerns or whatever. I'm always down to chat._**

 ** _Also, also, so, I did just recently land my first job... Now, I don't know exactly what that means for me as a writer yet, and I'm hoping it really won't affect how long it takes me to get these out. I don't_ think _it will since I take a fairly long time anyways, but I can't say that with 100% certainty. I just wanted to assure you all once again that I have no intentions of abandoning any story. So rest assured that an update will come. Now, like I said, it may not affect the rate of these at all. I don't know. We'll see. Thank you all so much for your patience!_**

 ** _ONWARD!_**

 ** _\- Alyssa_**


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